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THE 



NEW CENTURY HISTORY 



UNITED STATES 



EDWARD EGGLESTON 



RET IS ED AND ENLARGED 




AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY 

NEW YORK CINCINNATI CHICAGO 

BOSTON ATLANTA 



./ 



Dr. £g^lesion*s School Histories 



First Book in American History 

New Century History of the United States 



History of the United States and Its People 



Stories of Great Americans for Little Americans 

For Primary (Irades 

Stories of American Life and Adventure 

For Gramnaar Grades 



Copyright, 1904, 1907, 1919, by 
AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY 

Entered at Stationers' Hall, London 



N.C. — Rev. 
E. P. I 2 



M -8 iyi9 

• 

(g)CI.A530112 



PREFATORY NOTE 

The preparation of this book was the last literary work 
that Edward Eggleston undertook. He was convinced that 
there was a peculiar need of such a book in all our schools, 
and it was a matter of special concern to him to supply it. 

His purpose was to tell the story of our country so 
briefly that it might be mastered within the limited time 
allowed for its study in the schools, and yet to preserve 
the interest of the narrative unimpaired by too severe a 
condensation. 

Especially he wished to preserve and to present those 
facts with respect to life conditions at various periods which 
he held to be even more essential to the history of a people 
than is the record of public events. 

To no other of his books did he give a greater or a more 
conscientious care than to this. In no other did he feel 
a deeper interest, or an interest more completely unselfish. 

He had finished the manuscript, in its first draft, when 
increasing infirmity of health compelled him to cease work 
forever. There was yet a good deal to be done upon the 
book in the way of revision and otherwise, in order to make 
it what he wanted it to be. He asked me to do that work 
for him, and I have done it with scrupulous care to carry 

5 



6 - PREFATORY NOTE 

out his purpose in every detail, and especially to preserve 
his work untouched and unchanged in any of its essentials. 

It was his purpose to write a preface to this book him- 
self, but he was not spared to do so. 

It is in love and reverence for his memory that I now 
introduce the volume with this note. 

George Gary Eggleston. 

Culross-on-Lake George, 
September, 1903. 



CONTENTS 



FRONllsriECE. From a photograph taken by Miss L. Bernie Gallaher 
Washington, D. C. 

Discovery and Exploration, 

I. — The discovery of America, 
II. — The Indians, . ... 

III. — The age of discovery, 
IV. — Exploration and attempts at settlement, 
V. — English explorations, 

Settlement. 

VI. — Virginia, ..... 
VII. — Early New^ England settlements, 
VIII. — Other New England settlements, 
IX. — New York and Maryland, 

X. — The Carolinas, .... 
XI. — New Jersey and Pennsylvania, . 
XII. — The founding of Georgia, 
XIII. — Rebellion against English authority. 

Intercolonial Wars. 

XIV. — The progress of New France, . 

XV. — The earlier French and Indian wars, 
XVI. — The great French and Indian War, . 
XVII. — The great French and Indian War (continued) 
XVIII. — Later events of the French and Indian War, 

Traits of Colonial Life, 

XIX. — Warfare between Indians and white men, 

XX. — Living and getting a living, 

XXI. — Laws and punishments ; bond servants and slaves ; pirates, 

XXII.— Colonial industries, ........ 



The Revolution. 

XXIII. — Causes of the Revolution, . . , , 

XXIV. — The Revolution in New England, 

XXV. — The Revolution in the Middle Colonies and at sea, 
XXVI. — Events west of the Appalachians, 
XXVII.— The Revolution in the South, .... 

From the Revolution through the War of 1S12. 

XXV I IT. — Government under the Articles of Confederation, 
XXIX. — Washington's administration, . . , . 



9 
16 

24 

28 
37 

42 

54 
61 
6g 
76 
80 

85 
90 

95 

99 

105 

iro 

113 

119 

121 

128 
135 

141 

152 
159 

173 
178 



199 



CONTENTS 



XXX. — Washington's administration (continued). 
XXXI. — The administration of John Adams, 
XXXII. — Jefferson's administration, 
XXXIII. — Jefferson's administration (continued), 

XXXIV.— Water travel, 

XXXV.— The beginning of the War of 1812, . 
XXXVI. — The war to its close, .... 

The Period of Compromise. 

XXXVII. — The era of good feeling, ..... 
XXXVIII. — Roads, canals and railroads, .... 
XXXIX. — Jackson's administration, .... 

XL. — Van Buren's administration ; Harrison and Tyler, 

X LI. —The Me.xican War, 

XLII. — The Compromise of 1850 and other matters, 

XLIII. — The progress of invention, .... 

XLIV. — The Kansas-Nebraska debate: the Know-Nothing Party; 

the Dred Scott Case; the Panic of 1857; the Mormons, 

XLV. — The irresistible tendency to war, . . . . . 

The Civil War. 

XLVI. — From the fall of Sumter to McClellan's appointment, 
XLVII.— From Balls Bluff to Island No. 10, . 
XLVIII. — From the fall of New Orleans to the Seven Days' Battles 
XLIX. — From the second Manassas to Murfreesboro, . 
L. — From Chancellorsville to Lookout Mountain, 
LI. — From the battle of the Wilderness to Sheridan's ride, 
LII. — From the taking of Atlanta to the end of the war, 

Reconstruction and Recent Events. 

LIII. — After the war, 

LIV. — Grant's administration, ....... 

LV. — Hayes, Garfield and Arthur, ...... 

LVI. — Cleveland's first administration, . ... 

LVII. — Harrison's administration and Cleveland's second term, . 
LVIII. — Beginning of McKinley's administration, . . . . 

LIX. — The .Spanish War, ........ 

LX. — The war and its results, ....... 

LXI. — Invention and industry in the last half of the 19th century, 
LXII. — Some later events, ........ 

LXIII.— The Great War, 



Appendix. 

Constitution of the United States, 
Biographies, . . . . 

Index, . . . . . 



205 
211 

215 
223 
227 
230 
237 

247 
•255 
262 
267 
274 
279 
289 

294 
300 

310 
316 
324 
329 
335 
343 
347 



355 
361 

367 
374 
378 
383 
389 
395 
398 
402 
412 

I 

37 



DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 



CHAPTER I. 



THE DISCOVERY OF AMERICA. 



Legends of Early Discovery. — In the old romantic legends 
of the brave Norsemen who ^settled Iceland, it is related 
that as early as the year looo a Norse sailor, Leif, the son 
of Eric, sailed southwest from Greenland and discovered 
the coast of a new land. If the story is 
true, the coast found must have been that 
of the continent of America. In Wales, 
too, there is a tradition that about the 
year 1170 a Welsh prince named Madoc 
discovered a land west of Ireland, and 
founded a colony there, which was never 
again heard of. 

Even if these stories are true, the dis- 
coveries of Leif and Madoc led to noth- 
ing. If either or both of these sailors 
found the coast of America, people for- 
got all about it. America was not dis- 
covered to any profitable purpose until 

Columbus landed upon its shores in the 

^ .^^ T7 ii u J • 11 J.1 Statue of Leif , in Boston 

year 1492. Even then nobody m all the ' 

civilized world knew or dreamed that an unknown continent 

on this side of the ocean had been discovered. 

The Unknown Seas. — The mariner's compass was then in 

use, and so was the astrolabe, an instrument by which the 

captain of a ship at sea could calculate his latitude. But 

the use of these instruments was little understood. Sailors 




lO 



DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 



at that time ventured only a little way out upon the great 
ocean which lay to the west of Europe. They feared to 
go farther for many reasons. They believed that the west- 
ern ocean was covered with thick black fogs, that the water 
was boiling hot there, and many other fanciful things of 
a terrifying kind. 

The Trade with the East. — But the trading nations of Eu- 




The world as known in 1492 

rope, and particularly the merchants of Venice and Genoa, 
carried on a rich traffic with the countries of central and 
eastern Asia, all of which they grouped together in their 
minds under the one name, India. Many years before that 
time a Venetian named Marco Polo had lived for thirty 
years in those Eastern lands, wandering from Persia all 
the way to Japan. On his return he had told glowing 
stories of the vast wealth of that region in gold, silks, cotton 



THE DISCOVERY OF AMERICA 



II 




Marco Polo 



fabrics, cashmeres, precious stones, 
spices, pepper, ivory, and other de- 
sirable merchandise. 

In order to trade with countries so 
rich in the goods that Europe desired, 
the merchants of Venice and Genoa 
sent their ships to the most eastern 
ports of the Mediterranean and Black 
seas. There the ships met caravans 
from Persia, India, and other parts of 
the East richly laden with precious 
wares. But presently the half-savage 
Turks and Arabs, pushing their way towards Europe, began 
interfering with the caravan routes and plundering the cara- 
vans. This seriously interrupted the trade, and threat- 
ened to destroy it completely, so that the merchants of 
Europe sorely felt the need of finding some new and safer 
route by which to reach what they called India. 

Portuguese Voyages. — In this search for a new route to 
India the Portuguese were the leaders. They were the 
boldest sailors of that age, and they hoped, by finding a 
new route, to take for themselves the commerce of Genoa 
and Venice. Little by little they extended their voyages 
along the west coast of Africa, hoping to find a way through 
or round that continent into the Indian Ocean. It took 
them seventy years to do this, but at the end of that time 
they had accomplished it. They had found and rounded 
what we now know as the Cape of Good Hope. The route 
thus discovered was very long, however, and there was one 
.sailor in Europe who believed that he could find a shorter 
way. 

Christopher Columbus. — This sailor was a Genoese named 
Christopher Columbus.* He had sailed along all the 
coasts of western Europe to the far north lands. It is be- 
lieved that he had also made several voyages in Portuguese 
ships along the coast of Africa. His brother, at any rate, 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



12 



DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 




had done so. Colum- 
bus was one of the 
comparatively few 
people who at that 
time believed the earth 
to be round. The 
general belief was that 
it was flat, and that if 
one should sail too far 
west on the ocean, he 
would come to the 
edge of the world, and 
fall off. Believing the 
world to be round, 
Columbus was sure 
that he could reach 
India by sailing to the 
Christopher Columbus ^^^^^^ Thinking the 

earth to be somewhat smaller than it is, and Asia to be much 
larger, he supposed that eastern Asia lay about three thou- 
sand miles west of Europe. He knew nothing of this great 
continent of ours, and supposed that the Atlantic Ocean 
reached from western Europe to eastern Asia. 

Columbus was anxious to make a voyage westward in 
search of the Indies, but to do that he must have ships and 
provisions, and he had no "money with which to buy these 
things. 

Columbus in Search of Patrons. — He first appealed to the 
king of Portugal, who gave him little encouragement. In- 
deed, wherever he went he succeeded only in convincing 
nearly everybody that he was a half-crazy fellow, possessed 
of a foolish notion. Men argued that if the world was, in 
fact, round, a ship that sailed down the side of it could 
never sail back again, because the return voyage would 
be all uphill. They argued that no people could live 
on the other side of the world, because if they did they 
must be upside down. All this seems very foolish to us 



THE DISCOVERY OF AMERICA I3 

now, but in tliat day it seemed as plain as the simplest 
facts. 

The king of Portugal was somewhat impressed by what 
Columbus said, but he was not willing to pay the large 
reward which Columbus asked for if he should find the 
Indies; so he tried to steal Columbus's idea. He secretly 
sent ships of his own to see if India did, in fact, lie on the 
other side of the Atlantic. This expedition went but a 
little way. The sailors quickly became discouraged and 
came back laughing at Columbus as a crack-brained 
dreamer. 

Isabella to the Rescue. — Columbus went next to Ferdinand 
and Isabella, the king and queen of Spain, and laid his plan 
before them. - They called a council of men who believed 
themselves to be far wiser than any mere sailor could be. 
This council considered the matter, and reported that noth- 
ing could be more foolish than the Genoese sailor's idea. 
They proved its absurdity and impossibility so conclusively 
that after long waiting Columbus was dismissed. 

While waiting for an answer he had spent all the money 
he had, and had become a laughingstock in the streets. 
But Queen Isabella with some of her friends was inclined to 
believe that there might be something in his project. She 
sent for him at the last moment, and offered him the help 
he needed. 

Columbus Sails. — At last Columbus had an opportunity 
to test his own theory. Equipped with .three little ships 
scarcely bigger than fishing smacks of our time, two of 
them being in part open boats, he sailed from Palos (pah- 
los), Spain, in August, 1492. He had ninety men with 
him. His ships were the " Santa Maria " (sahn-tah mah- 
ree'ah), the " Pinta " (peen-tah), and the " Nina " (neen- 
yah). The Canary Islands lay in his course, and Columbus 
was delayed there a brief time. 

When he set out to sail farther west the courage of his 
sailors failed. As they found themselves going farther and 
farther out on an unknown sea, their fears increased. They 



14 



DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 




Santa Maria 



threatened to throw Columbus overboard and turn back, 
but he managed to hold them in check, concealing from 
them the distance they had come. After 
weeks of sailing to the west and south- 
west, a sailor one night saw a light, and 
early the next morning land was in sight. 
This was on the 12th of October, 1492. 
There was the wildest joy on the ship. 
The men who had hated Columbus and 
threatened to kill him now revered him. 
Columbus went ashore with many of 
his men, and set up a large cross as a 
sign that he took possession of the land 
for Spain. His landing was on an island 
which he named San Salvador (sahn 
sahl'vah-dor), or Holy Savior, because 
that was the Church name of the day on which he landed. 
Columbus's Return. — The island upon which Columbus 
landed was one of the smallest in that part of the West 
Indies which we now call the Bahama Islands. It was in- 
habited by people who wore no clothes of any kind, and 
who lived in the rudest manner. After sailing among 
the Bahamas for a time, Columbus went on southward, dis- 
covering Cuba and Haiti, and losing one of his ships by 
wreck and another by desertion. As he had then only one 
little ship, he left a part of his men on what is now the island 
of Haiti, to which he gave the name of His- 
paniola. 

As he had sailed westward about three 
thousand miles, he set out on his return voy- 
age in the full belief that the lands he had 
discovered were islands near the eastern coast 
of Asia. That belief he carried with him to 
his grave, never knowing or dreaming that 
he had found a new world. His return voyage was begun 
early in 1493. He took with him a little gold, some fruits 
and birds of the new land, and some of the inhabitants of 




THE DISCOVERY OF AMERICA 



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the islands. He was received by Ferdinand and Isabella 
with the greatest honor, and the crowds who once jeered 
at him for a fool now applauded the great discoverer, tak- 
ing off their hats, and bowing low in reverence as he passed 
through the streets. 

Columbus's Later Voyages. — In September, 1493, with 
a large expedition he sailed again for the West. During 
this voyage he planted a 
colony on Hispaniola, and 
discovered Jamaica, Porto 
Rico, and several smaller 
islands to the east. During 
his third voyage, in the 
year 1498, he saw a small 
part of the American con- 
tinent near the mouth of 
the Orinoco River; and on 
his fourth and last voyage 
(1502- 1 504) he reached the 
mainland in what we now call Honduras and Nicaragua. 
Still believing that he had reached the coast of Asia, he 
thought this part of the continent was the Malay Penin- 
sula. As he failed to bring back to Spain the gold and 
precious stones, and the rich fabrics of the East for which 
the Spanish merchants were greedy, Columbus fell into dis- 
grace, and died at last in poverty. 

Summary^ — i. Possible early discoveries of America by Northmen 
and Welsh led to no useful result. 

2. In the fifteenth century Turks threatened the caravan routes 
over which a rich trade passed between Europe and India, and thus 
prompted search for a new trade route. 

3. Columbus, believing the earth to be round, thought he could 
find a shorter sea route by sailing directly westward. 

4. After many years of waiting he obtained three little ships with 
which he set out from Palos. 

5. After sailing westward to about the point where he expected to 
find Asia, he discovered some islands, October 12, 1492, which he be- 
lieved lay close to the coast of Asia, but which were really a part of 
the West Indies in America. 



i6 



DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 



6. Later he made three more voyages to the West Indies, and 
landed on the mainland of South and Central America, but he died in 
his mistaken belief that he had discovered parts of Asia. 

Collateral Reading. — Irving's " Life of Columbus," Stratford edi- 
tion, 52-84; Seelye's " Story of Columbus," 25, 40-42, 46, 59-62, 105- 
106. 

CHAPTER II. 

THE INDIANS. 




The First Americans. — The continent which 
Columbus had discovered, ahhough nobody 
in Europe, Asia, or Africa knew of its exist- 
ence, was ah-eady inhabited by a people who 
had lived there for hundreds, and probably 
for thousands, of years. Whence they came, 
and how they got here, nobody has ever yet 
been able to find out. Columbus called them 
Indians because he believed this country to 
be India. They did not belong to any of the 
known races of mankind. They were not 
white like the Europeans, or black like the 
Africans, or yellow like the Malays and Chi- 
nese. Their skins were of a dirty copper 
color. Their hair was thick, straight, coarse, 
and intensely black in color. Their eyes were small and 
black, their noses prominent and their cheek bones unusu- 
ally high. They had little or no beard. They were tall, 
slender, lean, and very muscular. 

The Indian Tribes. — ^There were never more than a few 
hundred thousand of these Indians within the mainland of 
the United States. They lived and wandered about in 
tribes of a few hundred each. Sometimes several tribes 
joined together for defense, or for the plunder of other 
tribes, but each tribe was ruled by its own sachem in time 
of peace, and by its own chief in time of war. 



Indian warrior 



THE INDIANS 



17 



The Indian Nations. — East of the Mississippi the Indians 
formed three great groups of alHed tribes, sometimes called 
nations. The Iroquois lived in what is now New York, 
a part of Canada, and parts of the South. The Algon- 
quins held most of Canada and the greater part of the 
present United States north of Tennessee and east of the 
Mississippi. The Muscogees, or Muskokees, held the 
region now constituting our Gulf States. The Muskokees 
were the most advanced of all the Indians in the art of 
making things, but the Iroquois were the most skillful in 
war. West of the Mississippi the greater part of our coun- 
try was occupied by the Dakota, Shoshone, and Apache 
nations. 

The Higher Tribes. — -The Indians of Mexico and Peru 
were much more nearly civilized than any other Amer- 
ican tribes. But in a history of the United States we 
need not concern ourselves with them. It was once 
supposed that the curious " Indian mounds " found in 
the Mississippi valley 
were the work of an 
earlier and higher race 
of men, but it is now 
pretty well settled that 
the mound builders 
were none other than 
the Indians them- 
selves, and that the 
Indians were the only 
inhabitants of this 
country before the 
white man came. 

Indian Ways of Living. — The habits of the Indians were 
those of savages who lived mainly upon what grew wild, 
and what they could get from the woods and streams. 
They did, indeed, raise a few beans, squashes, and pump- 
kins, and a little corn among trees which they had killed 
by burning ofif the bark. The work of cultivating these 

2 — Egg. Hist. 




Indian mounds, 
Adams County, Ohio 



I8 DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 

things, like most other work among" the Indians, was done 
by the women. As a true savage the " Big Indian," as he 
called himself, thought it beneath his dignity to do much 
but hunt and fight. 

Indian Tools and Farming. — For tools the Indians used 
bones, sticks, sharp stones, and the like. Their cooking 
utensils, when they had any, were usually wooden vessels. 




Indians at home 



hollowed out by burning. In these they heated water by 
dropping hot stones into it. They roasted their green 
corn in the ashes without removing the husks. They beat 
the hard corn into a coarse meal, in rude wooden mortars, 
using stones for pestles. They baked their bread in the 
fire, and roasted their meat over the fire or before it when 
the)^ were not too careless to cook at all. Often they ate 
their food raw. They made fire by rubbing dry sticks to- 
gether until the wood ignited from the friction. They did 
this often by using a bowstring with which to turn one 



THE INDIANS 



19 




Making a fire 



Stick very rapidly while 
holding it in contact with 
another. 

Indian Manufactures.— 
Some of the Muskokees 
had learned to make a 
coarse kind of cloth. Some 
other tribes, chiefly in the 
far Southwest, made rude 
pottery. In the region 
where copper is found they 
sometimes fashioned that 
soft metal into hatchets. 
But they knew nothing of 
the art of working iron. 

The Canoe. — The most 
notable product of Indian 
skill was the canoe. This was of two kinds. Some tribes 
fashioned it out of a log, which they hollowed out by burn- 
ing the top surface and scraping 6f( the charred parts with 
shells or sharp stones. This was a slow and laborious way 
of working, but these log canoes when finished served their 
purpose well, and sometimes were large enough to carry 
thirty or forty men. The 
Northern tribes made 
a much more beautiful 
canoe out of birch bark, 
which they stretched 
over a light framework 
of the shape they de- 
sired, and made water- 
tight by the use of gums. 
These canoes were grace- 
ful in shape, and so light 
that they could be car- 
ried easily from one water 
to another. Indeed, the Birch canoe 




20 DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 

birch bark canoe is the one product of Indian handiwork 
that white men have never been able to improve either in 
beauty of form or in usefiihiess. 

The Clothing and Decorations of the Indians. — The East- 
ern Indians clothed themselves mostly in deer skin. A 
whole deer skin was thrown about the shoulders, a strip of 
the same material was wound around the loins, and leg- 
gings, worn in winter, were made of it. The Northern 
tribes wore beaver skins and other thick furs wrapped 
about them. In the South the Indians wore a garment 
woven of the fiber of the plant which we call Spanish bayo- 
net. The women wore deer-skin aprons. Their shoes or 
moccasins were made of deer skin, sometimes embroidered 
and ornamented with porcupine quills or shell beads. 
Indian warriors were fond of decorating themselves in 
hideous ways. They painted red, yellow, and blue stripes 
and spots upon their faces, and some of them wore the 
claws of animals and birds of prey as ornaments. In 
Virginia, Indians sometimes fastened living snakes to 
their ears and wore the hand of a dead enemy in the same 
way. The object of all this was to terrify the Indian's 
enemy. 

Both men and women in certain tribes decorated them- 
selves with beads made of sea shells. These were called 
wampum, and were worn in strings, belts, necklaces, and 
bracelets. Wampum was also used for money and for 
presents in making treaties between tribes or with white 
men. " The treaty belts usually had upon them rude pic- 
tures that served in place of writing. 

Indian Weapons. — Before white men came to this country 
the chief weapon of the Indians was the bow and arrow. 
The arrow w^as pointed with a sharpened flint, a bit of * 
deer's horn, the sharp spur of a wild turkey, the claw of an 
eagle, or a splinter of bone. Besides the bow and arrow 
the Indians used war clubs or battle-axes made by fasten- 
ing a stone to a handle. Sharpened stones and shells were 
also used for knives, but when white men came with steel 



THE INDIANS 



21 




knives and hatchets and guns, the Indians quickly quit 
making their own rude weapons and tools, and bought bet- 
ter ones from the white man, 
giving furs and the like in 
exchange. 

The Indian House. — The 
Indians in the East built 
rude houses of bark. In the 
South they used palmetto 
leaves. In the prairie re- 
gions where trees were 
scarce the Indian house or 
wigwam w^as made by set- 
ting up a circle of poles, 
leaning them together at 
the top, and covering them 
with skins. In the far South- 
west the houses were built 
of adobe or sun-dried mud. These houses were very large, 
some of them rising to five stories in height. A whole 
village usually lived in a single building. Such a building 

came, therefore, to be called by 
the Spanish piichlo, which means 
village. The Indians inhabit- 
ing such houses were called 
pueblo Indians, or village In- 
dians. In the North the Iro- 
quois often built their bark 
houses so large and long that 
twenty or more families could 
dwell in one of them. 

Clans. — The Indians were 
grouped in clans or families 
descended from the same 
grandmother or great-grandmother. Each clan was named 
after some animal, bird, or reptile, which was supposed 
somehow to look after the fortunes of the clan. Each clan 




Wigwam 



22 



DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 




Iroquois house 



had a rude drawing of its particular animal, bird, or rep- 
tile, which served as a sort of coat of arms. This pic- 
ture was called a totem, 
, '-— r - _ .. - and the members of each 

clan were called by the 
name of their totem — the 
Turtles, the Eagles, etc. 
All the families living m 
one house were of one 
clan. When an Indian 
wished to marry he must 
go to some other clan for a wife, and when he married he 
became a member of his wife's clan. 

Indian Religion. — The Indian was exceedingly supersti- 
tious. He had many ways of appeasing evil spirits, and 
especially the spirits of the animals he had killed, for he be- 
lieved that both animals and men live again after death. 
But before the discovery of America he had little that could 
properly be called a religion. 

Torture and Running the Gantlet. — In war the Indians 
were treacherous and cruel in the extreme, though in peace 
they were to be trusted. They tortured their prisoners in 




Runniug the gantlet 



THE INDIANS 2$ 

ways too shocking for description. Sometimes they made 
a frolic for themselves and gave a prisoner a chance of life 
by making him " run the gantlet." Indians armed with 
clubs and stone axes formed themselves in two hues near 
together, and the prisoner was required to run through 
the lane thus made between them, while each Indian struck 
at him with his club or battle-axe. Sometimes the prisoner 
was beaten to death before going half the distance, but 
often he escaped; and if he got through the lane with life 
still in him, he was suffered to go free. 

Summary. — ^i. Columbus gave the name of Indians to the natives of 
the country he discovered. 

2. There were probably never more than a few hundred thousands of 
Indians in what is now the main part of the United States. They were 
organized into widely separated tribes, each governed by its own sachem 
in time of peace and by its own chief in time of war. 

3. The Muskokees and the Iroquois were the most advanced tribes 
within what is now the United States. 

4. The Indians were tall, slender, lean, and very muscular. They 
were copper-colored, with black, coarse hair and small eyes, high cheek 
bones, and prominent noses. They lived in villages, and made their 
houses of bark, deer skins stretched on poles, palm leaves, or dried mud. 

5. They did not know how to use iron, but made their tools and 
weapons of stones, shells, deer horns, and the like. Their principal 
weapons were bows and arrows. They made canoes of logs and of 
birch bark. 

6. They raised a little corn and a few vegetables in a rude way. 
They cooked their food in wooden vessels or over the fire. Often 
they ate it raw. 

7. Their clothing consisted mainly of skins and furs. For adorn- 
ment they stained their faces and wore beads, animals' teeth and claws, 
feathers, and shells. 

8. The Indian's religion was little more than a belief in charms and 
spells. 

9. The Indian was a savage. He loved war, and delighted in kill- 
ing and torturing his enemies, but in peace he kept his promises, and 
was a trusty friend. 

Collateral Reading. — Dodge's "Our Wild Indians," 185-193; 
Bancroft's " History of the United States," II., 418-433; McMaster's 
" History of the People of the United States," I., 6-8. 



24 



DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 



CHAPTER III 



m' Chesapeake 
Bay 



THE AGE OF DISCOVERY 

Americus Vespucius. — The discoveries made by Colum- 
bus awakened great curiosity to know more of the New 
World. Other adventurers quickly set out to see what 
more there was to be found beyond the seas. Americus 
Vespucius* was a Florentine merchant who had removed to 
Spain a short time before Columbus sailed on his first voy- 
age. In 1497, ^"<^ again in 1499, Vespucius was with ex- 
peditions from Spain that discovered parts of America. It 
was seventeen months before the first of these expeditions 
got back to Spain, and the explorers are now believed to 
have reached the coasts of Mexico and Florida, and even 
to have sailed north as far as the Chesapeake Bay during 
the summer of 1498. Vespucius made a third voyage to 

the western continent in 1501 in 
the service of Portugal. He landed 
on Cape San Roque in South 
America, and explored the coast 
southward nearly to the Plata. 

The voyages of Vespucius and 
the written accounts he gave of 
his discoveries aroused interest in 
Europe, and a German geographer 
suggested that the land he had ex- 
plored should be called America 
in his honor. This land, South 
America, was supposed to be a 
continent lying south of Asia, for 
Lands discovered by Vespucius ^^^j^ y^^ ^he notion that Asia lay 

only about three thousand miles west of Europe was hardly 
questioned. On maps of that time the name America was 
given only to what is now Brazil, but it came later to be 
appHed to all of South America, and finally to the whole 
western world. 

* For biography, see Appendix. 




THE AGE OF DISCOVERY 



25 




Lands discovered by the Cabots 



Voyages of John Cabot. — Though Cohimbus had found 
few gold mines or spices or other sources of weahh, John 
Cabot,* a Venetian merchant who hved in Bristol, England, 
hoped for better fortune for him- 
self. He laid his plans before 
Henry VH., king of England, and 
received permission to make a 
voyage of discovery at the ex- 
pense of some Bristol merchants. 
He set out in May, 1497 — the year 
of Vespucius's first voyage — with 
one ship and eighteen men. 

On June 24 he reached land. It 
lay far to the north of the islands 
discovered by Columbus, and was 
probably the coast of Labrador. 
Cabot is commonly said to have 
been the first person to reach the 
mainland of America. Upon his return to England honors 
were showered upon him, and he was everywhere greeted 
as the " Great Admiral." During the next year he made 
another voyage to the mainland, which he supposed to be 
the coast of China. On this voyage he was accompanied 
by his son Sebastian. After going far to the north he 
turned about and sailed down the coast possibly as far as 
North Carolina. Cabot, like Columbus, died in the belief 
that he had actually reached Asia. 

Vasco da Gama. — During the same year in which Cabot 
made his first voyage, Vasco da Gama (dah gah-mah) sailed 
from Portugal down the coast of Africa. He rounded the 
Cape of Good Hope, crossed the Indian Ocean, and reached 
India at last. In 1499 he returned to Portugal, having his 
ships loaded with the coveted treasures of the East. For 
a while after this men ceased to care about sailing to the 
west. They had begun at last to suspect that the land dis- 
covered by Columbus was not a part of Asia. 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



26 



DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 



CARIBBEAN SEA 



Balboa's Discovery. — In 15 13 Balboa* (bahl-bo'ah), a 
bankrupt Spanish farmer of Hispaniola, who had fled to the 
Isthmus of Panama to escape from his creditors, discovered 

the Pacific Ocean. While 

making explorations on 
the Isthmus he was told 
that there was a great sea 
beyond the mountains, 
and that on its shores 
dwelt kings who had an 
abundance of gold and 
silver. Accompanied by a 
native guide and a party 
of Spaniards Balboa made 
his way across the Isth- 
mus with great difficulty. He went in advance of his men, 
ascended a high peak, and saw far below him the outspread 
waters of the ocean which we now call the Pacific. Balboa 
named it the South Sea. 

Magellan's Great Voyage. — Magellan * (ma-jel'an), a Por- 
tuguese navigator who voyaged to the East Indies by way 
of the Cape of Good Hope, and afterwards had entered 
the service of Spain, sailed in 15 19 with five vessels to search 




Balboa's discovery 




Slrnit o/Xl^ 
Magellan Xape Ho 



First voyage around the world 

for a southwest route to China and India. Going along the 
coast of South America, he succeeded in passing through 
the straits that now bear his name. Magellan sailed across 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



THE AGE OF DISCOVERY 2J 

the Pacific and was killed in the PhiHppine Islands, but one* 
of his ships succeeded in reaching Spain again by way of the 
Cape of Good Hope, and was thus the first ship that ever 
sailed round the world. 

Continued Search for Another Passage. — After the voyage 
of Magellan's ship it ought to have been clear that the 
western route to the Indies was too long for profitable 
trade uses. The shorter way was round the Cape of Good 
Hope, but the idea seemed fixed in men's minds that there 
must be some shorter western way, and for a hundred years 
afterwards navigators were going up one river after an- 
other on the Atlantic side of America, confidently expecting 
to find a way through the continent. 

The English had the idea that the shortest route to Asia 
must be through a northwest passage. An earnest search 
for this passage began with the first voyage of Sir Martin 
Frobisher in 1576. After that time more than a hundred 
expeditions were sent out by sea and land on this fruitless 
errand. People seem to have thought that the finding of 
such a passage was, in the words of a man of the time, 
'* the only thing of the world that was left undone whereby 
a man might become famous and fortunate." 

Motives of the Explorers. — It is not fair to think that the 
bold mariners who risked and often lost thefr lives in ef- 
forts to find routes to the land of gold and spices were 
wholly bent on money making. It was a time when men 
were seeking to learn what they could about the world they 
lived in. They went east and they went west to satisfy 
their curiosity and their love of adventure. The dangers 
they encountered only added in their eyes to liiie poetry of 
life. Travelers and explorers left their bones to whiten on 
every strand, and he who was so fortunate as to get home 
in safety to tell of the marvels he had seen was a hero in the 
eyes of all men. 

Summary. — i. Americus Vespucius in 1497 and the succeeding 
years made four voyages to America, which he described in published 
letters. America was named for him. 



28 DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 

2. John Cabot, in the service of England, sailed to the coast of 
America in 1497, and again during the next year. Like Columbus, 
he died in the belief that he had reached Asia. 

3. Da Gama sailed round the Cape of Good Hope in 1498, and came 
back bearing rich cargoes from the East. 

4. Balboa discovered the Pacific Ocean in 1513, and called it the 
South Sea. 

5. Magellan sailed through the strait that bears his name in 1520, 
'and was killed in the Philippine Islands. One of his five ships sailed 

completely, round the world. 

6. For a hundred years afterwards mariners continued to search 
for another passage through America. 

Collateral Reading. — Bancroft's "History of the United States," 
L, 8-12; Andrews's " History of the United States," I., 10, 11, 13, 14, 
16, 17, 25, 26; Higginsori's "Young Folk's Book of American Ex- 
plorers," 3-9. 

CHAPTER IV 

EXPLORATION AND ATTEMPTS AT SETTLEMENT 

Discovery of Florida. — Among those who were with Co- 
lumbus on his second voyage was Ponce de Leon (pon'- 
tha da la-6n'). He was made governor of Hispaniola, 
and afterward of Porto Rico. In 15 13 with three Httle 
vessels he set out in search of a land which was said to 
contain a wonderful fountain having power to give per- 
petual youth to those who bathed in its waters. The 
little fleet sighted the mainland on Easter Sunday, and 
Ponce de Leon took possession of the country in the name 
of the King of Spain. He called it Florida from Pascua 
Florida, the« Spanish name for Easter Sunday. Several 
years later he went again to Florida, carrying with him a 
company of settlers. In a battle with the natives Ponce de 
Leon was wounded by a poisoned arrow. Many of his men 
were killed, and in despair he went with the survivors to 
Cuba, where he soon afterwards died of his wounds. 

The Narvaez Expedition.— In April, 1528, Narvaez 
(nar-vah'eth) landed in Apalachee Bay, on the west coast 



EXPLORATION AND ATTEMPTS AT SETTLEMENT 



29 




Spanish soldier 



of Florida. He thought that here might be ahnost any- 
where in America rich empires, hke that which Cortez had 
recently conquered in Mexico. Sending 
his little fleet to explore the coast west- 
ward, Narvaez with most of his men 
marched into the interior in search of such 
empires. 

He found only a wild, wooded country 
and savage people, and after great hard- 
ships he returned to the coast. His ships 
had not come back, and Narvaez labored 
for two months in building five frail boats 
to take their places. Two of these boats 
were lost, and three were driven on the 
shores of Louisiana or Texas. All but 
four of the men died of starvation or dis- 
ease, or were killed by the Indians. Only 
a man named Vaca, two sailors, and a negro slave sur- 
vived. These wandered about for eight long years, suffer- 
ing great hardships. At last they reached the Gulf of Cali- 
fornia and finally fell in with some Spaniards, and made 
their way to the city of Mexico. 

The Spanish. Expeditions to Cibola. — There was an old 
European tradition that many years earlier a bishop of 
Lisbon had built seven cities on an island in the Atlantic, 
far west of Portugal. The Spaniards in Mexico were told 

by the Indians that some- 



where to the northwa'-d 
there were seven cities. 
When Vaca told them of 
the great extent of land 
to the northward, they 
^^ii^-j^^-^- ^.^^ sent Brother Marcos, a 

Spanish cannon missionary priest, to ex- 

plore this land and search 
for the seven cities. During a journey of three months his 
little company were frequently told by the Indians about the 





30 



DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 




Ancient Pueblo 



seven cities of which they were in search. At last they came 
upon a Zuiii pueblo called Cibola, but the Indians attacked 
the party in advance, and killed some of them. Brother Mar- 
cos was obliged to content himself with viewing the " city " 
from the top of a hill nearby. He then returned to 
Mexico to tell of the city he had discovered in which the 
houses were built of stone, and were several stories in 
height. 

Coronado's Exploration. — During the next year the Vice- 
roy of Mexico sent Coronado with an army of Spaniards 
and Indians to conquer the Land of the Seven Cities of 
Cibola. Marcos acted as guide. Disappointment met 
Coronado on every hand. The splendid city which Marcos 
had described in glowing terms proved to be only a 
pueblo of a few hundred people, and the other " cities " 
were much like it. As Coronado understood the Indians, 
there was farther on another city, called Quivira, where 
everything was of pure gold. He eagerly set out in search 



EXPLORATION AND ATTEMPTS AT SETTLEMENT 



31 



of this city, and went as far north as the present State of 
Kansas, only to find when he got there that the tribe called 
Quiviras were savages, living in straw-covered huts, with 
no knowledge of gold. 

Coronado led his army about from place to place for two 
years in further search for rich cities. He found none, of 
course, but he traversed Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, 
Kansas, and Colorado. Spanish priests afterwards went 
Into this region and established missions among the In- 
dians, one of the earliest of which (1605) was at Santa 
Fe. 

De Soto's Expedition. — The most famous expedition into 
the interior in search of countries like Mexico and Peru, 
abounding in gold, was led by De Soto. He had been 
governor of Cuba, and was now authorized to conquer the 
mainland to the north. 

In May, 1539, he landed on the west coast of Florida with 
nearly six hundred men and many horses. About the 




Sauta Barbara Mission 




32 DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 

middle of July he set out on a toilsome march through 
Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. He treated the Indians 
cruelly, compelling them to serve him as slaves, and robbing 
them to feed his men. Some he killed with- 
out excuse, thus provoking attacks upon him- 
self in return. He pushed on and on in spite 
of all difficulties in a determined effort to find 
a land abounding in gold. 

In 1 54 1 De Soto reached the Mississippi 
River, near the present site of Memphis. 
He called it The Great River. He crossed 
and recrossed the stream many times in his 
search for a land of gold, and finally, with 

his force much reduced, he set out for the 
Spamsn armor . . . ' . , . 

mouth of the river, mtendmg to build vessels 

there and send to Cuba for aid ; but in May, 1542, he died of 

a fever. His body, wrapped in blankets filled with sand, 

was sunk in the Mississippi to prevent its falling into the 

hands of the Indians. A few of his men finally reached the 

Gulf in boats they had built, and at last got to the Spanish 

settlements in Mexico. 

Spanish Claims. — Thus by 1542 many Spaniards had trav- 
ersed the southern parts of our country, and by their ex- 
plorations Spain had acquired a claim to that region from 
Florida to California, and as far north as Tennessee and 
Kansas. 

Early French Explorations. — While the Spaniards were 
vainly searching in the south for gold and for rich cities to 
plunder, thrifty French fishermen were drawing wealth 
from the sea on the Newfoundland fishing banks, and carry- 
ing on a lucrative trade in furs wi*h the Indians along the 
neighboring shores. 

Thus France also was interested in the New World, and 
in 1524 the French king sent an expedition under Verazano 
(ver-rah-tsah'no) to America to discover the longed-for pas- 
sage through the continent to Asia. Verazano explored the 
coast from North Carolina to New Hampshire, and is now 



EXPLORATION AND ATTEMPTS AT SETTLEMENT 



33 



thought to have been the first European to enter the Hud- 
son River. The French afterwards made this voyage, as 
the EngHsh made the voyage of the Cabots, the basis of a 
claim to a great part of North America. 

Jacques Cartier. — Ten years after the voyage of Vera- 
zano the French king sent another expedition, this time 
under Jacques Cartier (zhahk car-tya), to continue the 




Spanish North America 



search for a northwest passage through the continent. Car- 
tier examined the coasts of Newfoundland and Labrador, 
and entered the Gulf of St. Lawrence. He then returned 
to France to give an account of his discoveries. 

The next year he sailed again, hoping for better success. 
Lie entered the St. Lawrence River, and sailed up as far as 
Quebec, where the Indians had a village. The chief of the 
tribe was not willing that the white men should go farther, 
so he dressed some of his men to look like devils, and told 
Cartier that they had been sent by a god who lived higher 

3— Egg. Plist. 



34 



DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 



tip the river to warn the white men back. Cartier was not 
afraid of devils, however, and so he pushed on up the river 
in small boats till he reached a fortified Indian town on an 
island. Behind the town was a high hill with steep sides, 
to which Cartier gave the name Montreal, which means 
royal mountain. 

Nothing was done by France toward following up these 
discoveries until 1541. Cartier was then again sent out, in 
company with Roberval, and a settlement was made at' 
Quebec. This was wholly given up within two years. 

The Huguenot Colonies. — For twenty years after this 
nothing more was attempted by the French in America, 
but in 1562 Coligny (co-lee-nee), the leader of the Hugue- 
nots, or Protestants of France, sent out a party of explorers 
under Ribault (ree-bo) to found a colony in America 
in which French Protestants might be free from the per- 
secutions which they suffered in their native land. Ribault 
built a little town at a harbor on the coast of what is 
now South Carolina, and named it Port Royal. He left 
thirty men to hold the place, while he went back for more 

colonists and fresh supplies. 
The little company fell into 
trouble, and during the follow- 
ing year the few survivors of 
the colony returned to Europe. 
But in 1564 a second colony 
of Huguenots under Laudon- 
niere (lo-do-ne-er) was sent 
over, and a fort was built on 
the St. Johns River in Florida. 
It was called Fort Caroline, 
in honor of King Charles of 
France. 

St. Augustine Founded. — 
When news of this Protestant 
intrusion upon Spanish territory reached Spain it excited 
great indignation, and Menendez (ma-nen'deth), a dis- 




Old Spanish gateway, St. Augustine 



EXPLORATION AND ATTEMPTS AT SETTLEMENT 



35 



tinguished Spanish officer, was sent to drive the French 
out of Florida. Menendez built a fort (1565) which was 
the beginning of St. Augustine, the first permanent town 
in what is now the main part of the United States. He then 
attacked and overcame the colony at Fort Caroline, and put 
nearly everybody there to death. 

The Frenchmen's Revenge. — About three years later De 
Gourges (d'goorg) sailed at his own expense with a small 
force to avenge the slaughter of his countrymen. He took 
the fort the Spaniards had built on the site of Fort Caroline, 



""^isS* 




Canada and Acadia 



and hanged for murder everybody there who fell into his 
hands alive. 

Settlement of Acadia. — After the destruction of the Hu- 
guenot colony in Florida nearly forty years passed before 
the French made further serious efforts to plant settle- 
ments in America. At the end of the sixteenth century 
under fur-trading grants several French expeditions visited 
the region about the Gulf of St. Lawrence. In 1603 Henry 
IV. chartered a fur-trading company for Canada, which 
had been organized by De Monts. The next year a colony 
was sent over to Acadia (Nova Scotia). The first settle- 
ment was given up after a few years' struggle for existence, 
but a second attempt was made at Port Royal, and was more 
fortunate. This was the first permanent French settlement 
in America. 



$6 DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 

Settlement of Canada. — The real founder of the French 
power in America, however, was Champlain (sham-plain), 
the " Father of New France." He had visited the East 
Indies and Mexico, had ascended the St. Lawrence to the 
site of Montreal in 1603, and with De Monts had explored 
the coasts of Acadia and New England. In 1608 he 
laid the foundations of Quebec, which was the beginning 
of the real settlement of Canada. 

During the following year, with a band of Canadian In- 
dians, he discovered the beautiful lake which now bears his 
name, and on its banks fought a battle with the Iroquois of 
New York, which made those powerful Indians the inveter- 
ate enemies of the French. In 16 15 he ascended the Ottawa 
River, and, descending the outlet of Lake Nipissing, dis- 
covered Lakes Huron and Ontario. He penetrated the 
region that is now central New York. In that year also 
he brought to Canada the first' of the Catholic priests who 
afterwards established missions among the Indians, won 
their esteem, and rapidly carried French explorations 
throughout the regions of the Great Lakes and into the 
valley of the Mississippi.. 

Summary. — i. From 1513 to 1541, Spanish expeditions, under Ponce 
de Leon, Narvaez, Marcos, Coronado, and De Soto, explored the 
southern half of what is now the United States, and claimed all of that 
region. 

2. The French, during that time, established the Newfoundland 
fisheries and the fur trade, and explored the St. Lawrence as far as 
Montreal. 

3. Vain efforts were made to found French colonies in Carolina and 
Florida between 1562 and 1565. A permanent French colony was 
established early in the seventeenth century on the Bay of Fundy, and 
called Acadia. 

4. Champlain founded Quebec (1608), discovered Lakes Champlain, 
Huron, and Ontario, and was the real founder of the French power in 
America. 

Collateral Reading. — Parkman's "Pioneers of France in the New 
World," 5-13, 175-179, 271-283, 310-321; Parkman's "La Salle and the 
Discovery of the Great West," 7-9, 48-65, 230-257, 271-283. 



ENGLISH EXPLORATIONS 



n 



CHAPTER V 



ENGLISH EXPLORATIONS 



Hawkins and Drake. — By the year 1562 the Spanish ad- 
venturers had developed the rich gold and silver mines of 
Mexico and South America, and were sending to Spain 
immense quantities of the precious metals. At first they 
forced the Indians to work these mines, but the Indians 




- ^-i-t^ 



Drake viewing treasure taken from a Spanish ship 

were unused to labor and died by thousands. Then negro 
slaves were brought over from Africa, and were in great 
demand. 

About this time two English mariners, John Hawkins 
and Francis Drake,* began carrying cargoes of negro slaves 
to the West Indies and to the Spanish Main, as the north 
coast of South America was then called, and selling them 
to the Spaniards. 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



38 DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 

On one of their trips Hawkins and Drake were treach- 
erously attacked by the Spaniards, and barely escaped with 
their lives. In revenge for this attack, and with the secret 
approval of the English queen, Elizabeth, who soon after- 
ward went to war with Spain, Drake made many voyages 
to the Spanish Main, ravaging the settlements and captur- 
ing the richly laden Spanish treasure ships. 

Drake's Famous Voyage. — In 1577 Drake started on a 
voyage which made him famous. Passing through the 
Strait of Magellan, he surprised and attacked the Spanish 
settlements and vessels along the coasts of Chile and Peru, 
and carried ofif enormous treasure in gold and silver. In 
search of a passage back into the Atlantic he traced the 
coast to northern California, which he claimed for England 
and named New Albion. Thence he turned westward, 
crossed the Pacific, and reached England by way of the 
Cape of Good Hope in 1580. He was the first Englishman 
to sail round the globe. Queen Elizabeth visited his ship, 
the " Golden Hind," and on its deck knighted Drake for his 
exploits. 

Frobisher and Gilbert. — Meanwhile Sir Martin Frobisher 
had made three voyages to America (1576-78) in search of 
a northwest passage to Asia, and had discovered the ice- 
bound Hudson Strait. In 1583 Sir Humphrey Gilbert took 
a colony to Newfoundland, but returned at once, mak- 
ing no settlement there. One of Gilbert's ships was fur- 
nished by his half brother, Walter Raleigh.* 

Raleigh's Exploring Party. — On the return voyage the 
ship in which Gilbert sailed went down with all on board. 
But Raleigh's interest in the colonization of America con- 
tinued. He sent out two ships, commanded by Captains 
Amidas and Barlow, to explore. They reached the coast 
of what we now call North Carolina, landed, and took pos- 
session of the country for Queen Elizabeth. They spent 
about six weeks exploring the surrounding region. The 
Indians were friendly, and the white people won their hearts 

• For biography, see Appendix. 



ENGLISH EXPLORATIONS 



39 




by giving them trinkets in exchange for skins. The fruitful 
land seemed a paradise, with grapevines growing every- 
where on hills and in val- 
leys, over every little shrub, 
and climbing even to the 
tops of tall cedars. 

The report that these 
explorers carried home 
pleased Queen Elizabeth so 
much that she made Ra- 
leigh a knight, and named 
the new land Virginia, in 
honor of herself, as the vir- 
gin queen. The name was 
at first applied indefinitely 
to the whole region north 
of Florida. 

Raleigh's First Colony.— Walter Raleigh 

In the spring of the next 

year (1585) Raleigh sent over a colony ol about one hun- 
dred men. Ralph Lane, a man of considerable ability, was 
made governor. A settlement was made on Roanoke 
Island, on the North Carolina coast, 
and the ships returned to England. 

An Indian told Lane that the 

Roanoke River came out of a rock so 

near to the sea on the west that the 

waves sometimes broke over the rock 

TiRoanoke^ncl maflc the river salt Lane believed 

^^ J I '''^"'' the story, and set out with most of his 

^ ■^ men for the head of the river. Long 

Cape Hatteras , , , , . . . 

before they got there their provisions 
gave out. They killed and ate their 
dogs, seasoning the meat with sassafras leaves to give it a 
relish. At last Lane turned back and went swiftly down 
the river to the island, just in time to save the whole colony 
from destruction at the hands of the Indians. 




40 



DISCOVERY AND EXPLORATION 



The Return to England. — Sir Francis Drake, returning 
from an expedition against the Spaniards, visited Roanoke 
Island to see how Raleigh's colonists fared. He gave them 
a ship and other things that they needed, and the home- 
sick colonists determined to go back to England. They 
left their corn nearly ripe. Had there been wives and 
children in the colony, instead of only men, they might 
perhaps have stayed. 

The Use of Tobacco. — Tobacco was taken to England by 
the men of this company. The English smoked it in the In- 
dian fashion, drawing the 
smoke in at the mouth, 
and puffing it out through 
the nostrils. It was 
thought to be of the 
greatest benefit. There 
was hardly any disease 
that might not be cured 
by it, in their belief. Men, 
and even women, in their 
impatience to smoke, took 
the half of a walnut shell and made it the bowl of a pipe, 
using a straw for a stem. 

Raleigh's Second Colony. — Raleigh had learned a lesson 
from his first attempt, and when in 1587, in company with 
some merchants from London, he sent over another col- 
ony, women and children went along. 

Soon after the colony landed on Roanoke Island a child 
was born to one Dare, and named Virginia. She was the 
grandchild of the governor, John White. Virginia Dare 
was the first English child ever born within the present 
limits of the United States. 

Governor White went back to England for fresh sup- 
plies, and was detained there for three years by the great 
war with Spain. When at last he returned to America the 
colony had wholly disappeared. The colonists were never 
found. 




Indian pipes 



ENGLISH EXPLORATIONS 4I 

Raleigh's means were by this time exhausted. He sold 
his interest in America to others. 

Bartholomew Gosnold. — After the disappearance of Ra- 
leigh's second colony, and the failure of all attempts to 
find surviviors of it, no further effort was made to plant an 
English settlement in America till 1602. Then Bartholo- 
mew Gosnold sailed from England. He chose a more 
direct route than had been taken by others, and struck the 
coast of America at about Cape Cod, to which he gave its 
name. He landed on the island of Cuttyhunk, in Buzzards 
"Bay, and built a house for the men he intended to leave as 
the beginning of a permanent settlement. But the men 
who were to stay refused to do so, and went back in the ship 
that had brought them. 

Summary.— I. Hawkins and Drake, two English mariners, captured 
treasure ships of Spain. In 1577 Drake passed through the Strait of 
Magellan, seized enormous amounts of gold and silver along the coasts 
of Chile and Peru, wintered in California, and then sailed westward 
around the world. He reached England in 1580 — the first English 
captain to sail around the globe. 

2. Frobisher (1576-78) discovered Hudson Strait while seeking a 
northwest passage to Asia. Gilbert failed in an effort to found a colony 
in Newfoundland. His half-brother, Raleigh, made two attempts to 
found a colony in North Carolina. Queen Elizabeth named this region 
Virginia. All these colonists returned or disappeared. 

3. Gosnold attempted a settlement near Cape Cod (1602). His col- 
onists refused to remain. 

Collateral Reading. — Eggleston's "The Beginners of a Nation," 7-8; 
Bancroft's " History of the United States," L, 75-86. 



SETTLEMENT 



CHAPTER VI 



VIRGINIA 



The Virginia Company. — After Sir Walter Raleigh's fail- 
ure two companies were organized in England to colonize 
America. One was composed of persons living in or near 
London. It was called the London Company, and later 
the Virginia Company; the other was called the Plymouth 
Company, from the residence of its members. In April, 

1606, King James I. 
granted to each of these 
companies a charter right 
to plant colonies in what 
was then known as Vir- 
ginia, which included the 
whole region between 34° 
and 45° north latitude in 
America. To each com- 
pany he granted a terri- 
tory extending for a hun- 
dred miles along the coast, 
and a hundred miles in- 
land, together with the 
islands near the coast. The London Company was to plant 
its colonies between 34° and 41° north latitude, while the 
Plymouth Company had permission to settle anywhere be- 
tween 38° and 45°. Thus the two grants overlapped each 
other, but to prevent trouble it was provided that the com- 
pany which made its settlement last should not plant its col- 
ony within one hundred miles of a colony already planted 
by the other. 

42 




Virginia 



VIRGINIA 43 

The Popham Colony. — The London Company sent out 
its colony in December, 1606. During the following year 
the Plymouth Company sent its first colony under Captain 
George Popham. After spending the winter in Maine, near 
the Kennebec River, the colonists gave up the enterprise, 
and returned to England, having suffered, as they said, 
" extreme extremities." 

The Jamestown Colony. — The colony sent out by the 
London Company suffered much also, but it stayed. It 
was the first English settlement that did so. 

There were, of course, no steamships in those days, and 
the three vessels in which the colonists came were very 
small, and scarcely fit for use even in inland waters. The 
largest of them, called the " Susan Constant," was of only 
a hundred tons burden. The " Goodspeed," their next 
largest ship, was not half that size, and the smallest of 
the three was the little pinnace " Discovery," a vessel of 
only twenty tons burden. 

It was December — a time of year w^hen, in our day, even 
great steamships find the Atlantic well-nigh too rough for 
them — and these frail little vessels struggled for six weeks 
before getting out of sight of the English coast. After the 
fashion of that day, the little fleet, instead of sailing straight 
across the Atlantic, went far southward to the Canary Isl- 
ands, and thence to the West Indies, where the colonists 
stopped to repair damages. When they left the West Indies 
they meant to land on Roanoke Island, but a storm drove 
them farther north, into a river which they named the 
James (see Map, p. 47). It was spring by that time, and 
the Virginia wild flowers were all in blossom. 

The First Year at Jamestown. — This colony was made up 
of all sorts of discontented men, unfit for the work that 
lay before them. Unhappily they had no leader worthy 
of the name. It was now seed time, but instead of plant- 
ing fields from which to gather a supply of food, the colo- 
nists sailed up and down the river, uncertain where to 
place their settlement. When at last they chose a place, 



44 



SETTLEMENT 



it was too late to plant a crop, and they had nearly eaten 
up their supply of food. They made their settlement, 
which they called Jamestown, on an unwholesome pen- 
insula, which has since become an island. The settlers 
lived in hovels and in sorry tents, some of them even in 
holes dug in the ground. There was constant danger 
of attack by the Indians, and one third of the men were 
kept on watch every night. The watch lay on the bare 
ground in a kind of swamp. Such exposure and other hard- 
ships brought serious illness upon the underfed men, and 
sometimes not five men in the whole colony were able to bear 
arms. It was not long before one half of them had died. 
The rest at last began to get better food from the Indians, 
and they gradually regained their strength. They built 
themselves better homes, and thatched their roofs with 
sedge and wild grasses. Early in 1608, 
and again in the autumn, ships arrived 
from England with more colonists, 
bringing the total number up to two 
himdred. 

John Smith. — By this time, too, the 
colonists had begun to fall under control 
of a leader fit to command. This was a 
young man named John Smith,* who 
had seen many adventures in many 
lands, and who had been one of the 
original settlers at Jamestown. 

Smith sailed up and down the various 
rivers of Virginia in the pinnace " Discovery," exchanging 
beads and trinkets for corn, with which he kept the James- 
town people from starving. On a voyage up the Chicka- 
hominy River two of his men were killed, and he himself 
was taken prisoner by the Indians. Powhatan (pow-ha- 
tan'), the head chief of about thirty tribes, finally set Smith 
. free, and sent him back to Jamestown. The young man 
was the first who explored Chesapeake Bay. He quickly 

♦For biography, see Appendix. 




Captain John Smith 



VIRGINIA 



45 



'^pg^^a ym^yT 




1? 1 S" X 6" ^ — ' 



^ ;t 6- X 6- 



became the leading man in 
the new settlement, and was 
made president of the colony. 
Pocahontas. — Powhatan had 
a daughter named Pocahon- 
tas. She was about ten years 
old when Smith, who was of 
romantic temper, described 
her as beautiful; and many 
years afterwards he declared 
that it was she who had res- 
cued him from death among 
the Indians. He said that 
I Powhatan had ordered him 
slain, but that just as the war 
club was about to descend 
upon his head the little girl 
threw her arms about his 
neck, and pleaded for his life 
until her father relented and set him free. This conduct 
of Pocahontas was entirely in accord with Indian 
usage, but the incident has been discredited by 
some historians because Smith did not mention 
it in his first account of his adventures. 

More Colonists. — In 1609 ^ ^^^^ of nine vessels, 
with a large company of colonists, was sent out 
under Sir Thomas Gates and Sir George Somers 
to strengthen the colony at Jamestown. Two of 
the ships were wrecked in the Bermudas, and 
both Gates and Somers were left there. It would 
have been better for Jamestown if the rest of 
the company had sliared the fate of their compan- 
ions, for the newcomers were an injury rather 
than a benefit to the colony. They would not 
work, yet they must eat. They were led by two 
men who were old enemies of John Smith, and 
were now disposed to give him all the trouble War club 





4^ SETTLEMENT 

they could. Smith was dis- 
abled by an accidental ex- 
plosion of gunpowder, and 
went back to England on 
one of the returning ships. 

The Starving Time. — The 
settlers had now not a 

n 4. ■ c -tu* • * 1 man among them who 

Captain Smith's pistol » 

could rule the colony well 
or keep on good terms with the Indians. They soon, there- 
fore, got into trouble with their savage neighbors. The 
Indians lay in ambush near the settlement, and killed every 
colonist that ventured out of Jamestown. The colonists 
could buy no more corn of the unwilling savages. As 
spring approached, the scanty store of corn became ex- 
hausted and famine set in. The starving people ate the 
dogs and the horses that they had brought from England. 
They even ate rats and mice and snakes. This time of dis- 
tress was always referred to as the " starving time." Some 
of the colonists got away in a pinnace and went back to 
England. Some were killed by the treacherous savages. 
Most of them died of sheer famine. 

Gates and Somers Arrive. — The Bermudas were unin- 
habited at the time Gates and Somers were shipwrecked, 
and they were said to be haunted by fairies and devils. 
A writer of that times tells us that the fairies were great 
flocks of birds, and the devils only herds of hogs. On 
these the shipwrecked men lived well till the next spring. 
They then built two little vessels, which they named 
" Patience " and " Deliverance," of cedar from trees that 
grew on the islands, rigged them with sails from their 
wrecked ships, stocked them with salted pork and birds, 
and succeeded at last in reaching Jamestown. 

Jamestown Abandoned. — In the autumn of i6og there 
had been four hundred and ninety men in the Virginia Col- 
ony, but only sixty famine-smitten wretches remained 
alive when Gates and Somers arrived in the following 



VIRGINIA 



47 



>''- 



May. Had they got there a few days later there would 
have been nobody to greet them. 

Gates had with him some provisions, salted meats, 
birds, and turtles, but not enough to last the colony for 
more than two or three weeks. There was no time for 
delay. English fishing vessels lay ofif Newfoundland, and 
with a lucky passage he might reach them before his 
provisions should give out. Crowding all the people on 
board his fleet of four little pinnaces, he set sail down the 
river from Jamestown, abandoning the settlement. 

Jamestown Resettled. — Meantime the charter limits of 
the colony had been extended to four hundred miles along 
the coast, and thence west 
and northwest from sea to 
sea. Lord De la Warr 
had been appointed gov- 
ernor, and arrived in the 
James River (June, 1610) 
just in time to save the 
enterprise. 

From men whom the 
colonists had stationed at 
the mouth of the river to 
give notice of the ap- 
proach of Spaniards, De 
la Warr learned of the 
desperate situation of the 
colonists, and of Gates's 
purpose to leave. He sent 
his long boat up the river 
to turn the colonists back 
again. It was Sunday 
morning when De la Warr 
made his landing at James- 
town. He went to the South Virginia by the charter of 1649 

little church and upbraided the people for the idleness that 
had brought such famine upon them. Lord De la Warr had 



^ / 








o 



SCALE OF MIIES 



30 iSO 150 



48 



SETTLEMENT 




Piece of armor found 
at Jamestown 



abundant supplies with him, ,^,d^^S5E^s. 

and he had authority to rule 

the colony by martial law. 

The mortality continued. 

Lord De la Warr fell ill and 

went back to England. 

Dale's Government. — Dur- 
ing the next year Sir 
Thomas Dale was sent over 
to take charge of the James- 
town colony. For the next 
five years he ruled without pity for the idle or mercy for 
the lawless, and without much regard for the welfare of 
the people. His aim was to make the colony profitable to 
the company, whose agent he considered himself. His 
severity drove the colonists to despair. Some fled to the 
woods, and some tried to escape in little boats. 

The Cause of Trouble. — The settlers in Virginia had been 
promised that after five years they should own their land 
and work for themselves; but seven years had 
passed, and the company still owned every- 
thing. Each man had from the common stock 
such food and clothing as it afforded, and all 
work was done for the company. An indus- 
trious man had no advantage over a man who 
spent his time in idleness. So no one cared to 
work much, and the colony was always near 
the point of starvation. In 1614 Dale gave 
some of those who had been in Virginia the 
longest the use of three acres apiece, and al- 
lowed them one month m a year to work their 
little patches for themselves. In return for 
this small privilege they were required to sup- 
port themselves, and to give eleven months of 
their time each year to work for the " com- 
mon stock.*' Even this small private interest 
Tobacco plant was felt to be a benefit to the colony. 




VIRGINIA 



49 



Tobacco. —By that time the people of Europe had come 
to use a great deal of tobacco. All of it was grown in 
Spain or in the Spanish colonies in the West Indies. John 
Rolfe, one of the Jamestown colonists, seeing the plant in 
the Indian fields round Jamestown, planted some of it in 
1612, and was soon able to furnish a supply of it to 
English smokers and snuff takers. The climate and 
soil of Virginia were suited to tobacco, and it could be 
easily shipped from the farms which were all on the banks 
of rivers. In 161 7 the very streets of Jamestown were 
planted with tobacco. It was in such demand in Europe 
that its price was very high. The people all went to culti- 
vating tobacco instead of corn, the price of which was 
fixed by law, and presently they again came near starv- 
ing from their neglect to grow grain. There was very 
little money in the colony, 
because it was forbidden to 
carry gold and silver away 
from the mother country ; 
so people soon began to 
use tobacco for money. 

The Lady Rebecca. — 
Dale had trouble with the 
Indians at first, and one 
Captain Argall thought it 
would help to hold them 
in check if Pocahontas, the 
daughter of the head chief, 
Powhatan, could be se- 
cured as a hostage. He 
bribed some Indians whom 
Pocahontas was visiting 
to give her up to him, and 

she was carried to James- 

01 1 J 1 J Marriage of Rolfe and Pocahontas 

town. She had played 

among the English while yet a child, and had always been 

friendly toward them. She was now a grown woman, and 

4— Egg. Hist. 




50 SETTLEMENT 

after receiving baptism and a Christian name, Rebecca, she 
was married, in 1614, to John Rolfe, the EngHshman who 
had first planted tobacco. She went to England with her 
husband two years later, where she was received with royal 
honors as a princess. She died in England, leaving an 
mfant son, from whom several Virginia families are to-day 
proud to trace their lineage. 

Argall's Government. — Dale was succeeded by Captain 
Argall, who had served under him and had shown much 
enterprise and ability. But no sooner was Argall made 
governor than he began to rob both the colony and the 
company. He seized everything within reach for his own 
profit and that of his partners in England, and the colony 
was almost ruined. 

The Great Charter. — In 161 8 a new movement in behalf 
of Virginia began in England. Auxiliary societies were 
formed to send out colonists and make settlements. In 
a year the population increased from less than four hun- 
dred to a thousand men. In order to establish a better 
government the company in London granted to Virginia 
(1618) a charter which gave the people a voice in mak- 
ing their laws, and limited the power of the governor. 
This document was called the " Great Charter." It pro- 
vided for a governor and a council of state, to be chosen by 
the company in England, and a general assembly, to be 
elected by the colonists. Each settlement was to send 
two men to represent it in this general assembly. The 
" Great Charter " also gave the Virginians the right to di- 
vide the -land into farms for private ownership. Sir George 
Yeardley was appointed governor to succeed Argall. 

The First Assembly. — On July 30, 1619, the men who 
were chosen to represent the eleven settlements in Vir- 
ginia met in the little church at Jamestown. This repre- 
sentative assembly was called the House of Burgesses, 
that is, of men each representing a burg, or borough, an 
old English name for a town. 

With this assembly free government began in America. 



VIRGINIA 



51 



The other colonies, afterwards formed, were organized 
more or less upon the same pattern, and from this begin- 
ning came the government of our country by a President, 
a Senate, and a House of Representatives, and of each of 
our States by a Governor, a Senate, and a House of Rep- 
resentatives. 

The Importation of Wives. — At this time there were very 
few women and children in the colony. The company in 
England began to realize that the settlement must have 
more home makers, and in 1619 a shipload of young women 
were sent to Virginia to be married there. 

A man who wished to marry one of these young women 
must first gain her consent, and then pay in tobacco the 
expense incurred in bringing her over. This was called 
" buying a wife." Ninety young women came at first, and 
more in 1621. The experiment proved successful. Men 
learned to love the country where they labored on their 
own land for their wives and children. 




Landing of the young women in Virginia 



52 SETTLEMENT 

Slaves. — In 1619 a Dutch ship entered the river and 
came to anchor before Jamestown. The captain was for- 
bidden to land. He then threatened to throw overboard 
some negro slaves that he had captured in the West In- 
dies. He was short of food and water, and could not 
carry the negroes farther. The Jamestown authorities 
consented to buy the negroes. These were the first slaves 
in English America. 

Indian Massacre of 1622. — By 1622 the colony numbered 
about four thousand people, and the plantations occupied 
most of the peninsula between the James and York rivers 
as far up as the site of Richmond. There were planta- 
tions, also, lining the south bank of the James. In the 
main, the Indians had been friendly since the marriage 
of Pocahontas, but her father, Powhatan, had recently 
died, and his brother, who had succeeded him as head 
chief, was far less friendly to the whites, and looked with 
jealousy upon the encroachments of their plantations upon 
his hunting grounds. 

It needed little to fan his smoldering dislike into a blaze 
of hostility, and this was supplied by a fatal quarrel be- 
tween an Indian and a settler. The quarrel led to a sudden 
attack by the Indians upon all the settlements in the spring 
of 1622. The white men were at work in the fields, and 
the Indians killed many of them with their own axes, 
hatchets, and hoes. Nearly one tenth of the colonists — 
men, women, and children — w-ere cruelly butchered in a 
single day. This was the beginning of a bloody war, 
marked by many treacheries on both sides; but the Indians 
were finally so thoroughly subdued that they gave the col- 
onists no further trouble for more than twenty years. 

Virginia as a Royal Colony. — The " Great Charter " of 
1 61 8 was given to the colony, not by the king, but by the 
London Company. In 1624 King James I., having quar- 
reled with the company, had its charter annulled by the 
courts. He then sent commissioners to Virginia to in- 
quire into the affairs of the colony, but when they asked 



VIRGINIA 



53 




Pillory 



to examine the public records, the Assembly firmly re- 
fused to give them up, and when the clerk of the House 
of Burgesses betrayed its secrets to the king's commis- 
sioners, the Assembly stood him in the 
pillory and cut off part of his ear. They 
passed a resolution that no tax should be 
levied upon the colony, without the con- 
sent of the people. 

King James died the next year, and the 
colonists sent ex-Governor Yeardley to 
England to assure the new king, Charles 
I., that they were his loyal subjects, and 
that they desired no change in their gov- 
ernment. Yeardley succeeded so well in 
his mission that the king knighted him, 
and sent him back in 1626 as the royal 
governor, but permitted the people to 
retain their House of Burgesses. Virginia remained a royal 
province for one hundred and fifty years. The king ap- 
pointed its governors and claimed the right to veto its laws, 
but the colonists elected a House of Burgesses to make its 
laws and levy its taxes. 

Summary. — i. The first permanent English colony in America was 
planted by the London Company at Jamestown, .Virginia, in 1607. 

2. The colonists suffered great hardships, and would have starved 
to death but for John Smith, who made friends of the Indians and pro- 
cured corn from them. 

3. Other colonists were sent to Jamestown in 1608 and in 1609. 
Smith returned to England, the colonists fell into trouble with the 
Indians and the starving time ensued. The few wretched survivors 
decided to return to England, when Lord De la Warr, who had been 
appointed governor, arrived with more colonists and supplies (1610). 

4. In 1612 tobacco began to be cultivated, and became the staple 
and almost only product. 

5. The first Representative Assembly in America met in 1619 in 
Jamestown. In the same year young women were brought from Eng- 
land to be wives for the settlers, and the first negro slaves were brought 
to the colony. 

6. A terrible Indian massacre occurred in the spring of 1622. This 



54 SETTLEMENT 

led to a war with the Indians, who were finally subdued, and gave the 
settlers no more trouble for over twenty years. 

7. In 1624 the king annulled the charter of the London Company, 
and Virginia became a royal province, but the colonists were permitted 
to elect their House of Burgesses, which made the laws and levied the 
taxes in the colony. 

Collateral Reading. — Eggleston and Seelye's "Pocahontas," 17-23- 



CHAPTER VII 

EARLY NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENTS 

Puritans and Separatists. — Three hundred years ago it 
was customary to persecute people who differed in reUgion 
from the majority of the population. Catholics persecuted 
Protestants, and Protestants persecuted Catholics, and one 
sort of Protestants persecuted another sort. Some Protes- 
tants in England did not like the prayers and other cere- 
monies of the established church. They wanted to reform 
the church, but had no idea of leaving it. These were called 
Puritans. There were others who disliked the ceremonies 
so much that they separated from the church. These were 
called Separatists, and they were the most persecuted of all. 

The Pilgrims. — There was one congregation of Separa- 
tists in the northeast of England in a little place called 
Scrooby, in Nottinghamshire. In the year in which 
Jamestown was settled these persecuted people fled out of 
England and went to Holland, where they were allowed 
to worship God as they pleased. There they lived about 
thirteen years. They at last became dissatisfied with their 
conditions in Holland. They saw that if they should re- 
main there their children and grandchildren would be- 
come Dutchmen. They therefore resolved to go to Amer- 
ica and plant a colony there. These were the people whom 
we call the Pilgrims. 

Only about one half of them could get away from Ley- 
den (li-den), where they were then living. In July, 1620, 
they left Holland for England in a little ship called the 



EARLY NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENTS 



55 



" Speedwell," which was to have crossed the ocean in com- 
pany with the " Mayflower," but was found unfit for the 
voyage. In September the " Mayflower " sailed from 
Plymouth, carrying the Holland pilgrims and others who 
had joined them, one hundred and two persons in all. 

The voyage was a stormy one, lasting nine weeks. The 
Pilgrims had a charter from the Virginia Company, and 
they intended to settle in the region south of the Hudson 
River, Their captain took them to Cape Cod, which was 
far outside the limits of the Virginia Compan\ 's domain. 





WjmFT^ 




W' 




^1 r 



Signing the compact in the cabin of the "Mayflower" 

As they were sick and ship-weary, however, they decided 
to settle somewhere near where they were. 

The Compact. — Those persons on the ship who were not 
Pilgrims, but strangers who had joined themselves to the 
Pilgrims in England, threatened that they would not obey 
the authority of any government. The Pilgrims, there- 
fore, before landing drew up a compact pledging them- 
selves to enact from time to time such laws " as shall be 
thought most meet and convenient for the general good 
of the colony." To these laws nearly all the company 
promised " due submission and obedience." 

The Landing at Plymouth. — Captain John Smith had 



56 



SETTLEMENT 



sailed along what is now the New England coast some 
years before, in an open boat, and had made a map, giv- 
ing to a harbor within the Bay of Cape Cod the name of 
Plymouth. After exploring the coasts the Pilgrims de- 
cided to land at this point. A number of them landed on 
Plymouth Rock on the 21st of December, 1620. 

Sufferings. — The long voyage in the overcrowded ship, 
and the lack of good food and warm houses in so cold a 
climate had their natural effect. Nearly all of the colo- 
nists fell ill, and by the end of the winter forty-four of 
them were dead. Six more died within the year. Among 
these were John Carver, the governor. The first explor- 
ing party sent from the " Mayflower " had been attacked 
by Indians, and the Pilgrims lived in constant fear of them. 
The Pilgrims and the Indians. — The Indians living near 
Plymouth were hostile toward all white people because an 
English captain had treacherously carried off some Indians 
to Europe five or six years before. Among these captured 
Indians was a man named Tisquantum. He had learned 
to speak Englisl\, and was now back in America, near Plym- 
outh but he kept away from 
the Pilgrims. 

One day, when the dread- 
ful first winter was nearly 
over, an Indian came into the 
town alone, and greeted those 
he met with the words, "Wel- 
come, Englishmen." He was 
a sagamore, or chief, from 
the coast of Maine, who had 
learned a little English from 
men on the fishing vessels. 
His name was Samoset. The 
Pilgrims treated him kindly, 
bringing other Indians with 




Samoset 



and he made them visits, 
him. 

One of those who came was Tisquantum or, as the English 



EARLY NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENTS $7 

called him, Squanto. He stayed in Plymouth till his death, 
two years later, and was very useful to the whites. He 
taught them how to catch the fish in the bay, and how to en- 
rich the soil of their corn-fields by putting one or two fish 
into each hill, as the Indians did. Between Cape Cod and 
Narragansett Bay hved the Wampanoags. Their chief, 
Mas'sasoit, became a good friend of the Pilgrims. Gov- 
ernor Carver made a treaty of peace with him, 
which was not broken for fifty-four years. 

Miles Standish. — The military commander at 
Plymouth was Captain Miles Standish. He was 
not a Separatist in religion, but he liked the 
Pilgrims, and had joined his fortunes with theirs. 
It was his habit to deal severely with hostile In- 
dians. 

Plymouth. — The region in which the Pilgrims 
settled had been given to the Council for New 
England, which was chartered (1620) to suc- 
ceed the Plymouth Company. When the " May- 
flower " got back to England in 162 1 with the 
news that the Pilgrims were established at Plym- 
outh, their friends got for them a patent from 
the Council for New England, which gave the 
colony one hundred acres of land for each colo- Standish's swords 
nist, rent free for seven years, and fifteen hundred acres 
for public use. It also gave them the right to govern them- 
selves. On the death of Qovernor Carver, William Brad- 
ford,* then only thirty-two years old, was made governor, 
and he was reelected every year for the rest of his life, 
except when he refused the office. Elder Brewster ruled 
the church, and also took his turn standing guard against 
Indian attacks. 

Progress of the Colony. — For several years food was scarce, 
and famine often threatened the colony. The Pilgrims lived 
out of a common stock of supplies, as the Jamestown people 
did. The allotment of a small body of land to each family 

♦ For biography, see Appendix. 




58 



SETTLEMENT 



in 1624 relieved all distress. The colonists were ready 
enough to work when each man knew that he should eat of 
the fruit of the labor of his hands. Meanwhile, other fam- 
ilies came out from Holland and from England, and in 1624 
there were one hundred and eighty persons in the Plymouth 
colony. 

By 1626 the Pilgrims had begun living in houses made of 
hewn planks, each house having a little garden about it, 
while a stockade surrounded the town. On a hill now 
known as " Burial Hill " there was a square house, strongly 
built, which served the Pilgrims as a fort. Six small cannon 
on the flat roof commanded the country round about. The 
people were called together on Sunday mornings by the 
beat of a drum, and the men all carried their firearms to 
the meetinghouse, and kept them within easy reach during 
the service. 

John White's Colony. —John White, rector of a church in 
Dorchester, England, being a Puritan, became concerned 

that persons going on fish- 
ing and trading voyages 
to New England should 
be so many months with- 
out church privileges. He 
interested the shipowners 
of his town in making a 
settlement on the coast of 
New England. Only a few 
of the men who came over 
to fish were needed to take 
the cargo back. The rest 
might remain and employ 
themselves in hunting and 
cutting timber, and in the 
spring might plant corn. 



might 

In such a settlement a 
minister might live and 
care for the souls of the 




Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay 



EARLY NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENTS 



59 




Puritan costumes 



fishermen. This was John White's dream. The Dor- 
chester Company was organized, and in 1625 a few fisher- 
men were left on Cape Ann to form the beginning of a 
colony. Others came afterward. But everything went 
wrong, and three years later most of the men went 
back to England. The rest removed 
to Naumkeag, afterwards called 
Salem. 

The Spread of Puritanism. — The 
ideas of the Puritans had spread 
throughout England, and those who 
accepted them now formed a party 
of power and influence. The party 
was as much political as religious. 
When Charles I. became king, the 
Puritans fared badly, and they lost 
all hope of bringing about the 
changes they desired in Church or 
State. Many of them began to think it would be better to 
go, as the Pilgrims had done, to the wilderness of America 
than to remain in England. 

The Massachusetts Bay Company. — In 1628 the Massa- 
chusetts Bay Company was formed. Like the Virginia 
Company, it was composed of shareholders. It bought land 
from the Council for New England. The grant thus ob- 
tained gave them all the land between the Merrimac and 
Charles rivers, and three miles beyond each river, extending 
to the Pacific Ocean on the west. In June of the same year 
a little party was sent out under John Endicott, and a set- 
tlement called Salem was made at Naumkeag, where some 
of White's colonists still lived. From that time onward 
Puritans came over the sea in ever-increasing numbers. In 
March, 1629, the Massachusetts Bay Company got from 
Charles I. a charter which gave it the right to govern the 
colonies it should plant in America. 

This was not free government, and the Puritans in Eng- 
land were not satisfied. They adopted a shrewd device. 



6o 



SETTLEMENT 



The charter did not say where the company should meet, 
and a few months later it resolved to change the place of 
its meetings from London to the colon)^ and to carry the 
charter across the seas. By this wise movement the people 
in the colony acquired the right to govern themselves by 
becoming members of the company. 

The Great Migration.— John Winthrop * set sail with the 
" Great Migration " in 1630. He had with him the char- 
ter and more than a thousand peo- 
ple. Twenty thousand people were 
added to the colony between 1630 
and 1640. 

There lived on the site of Bos- 
ton one Blackstone, a clergyman, 
who invited the newcomers to set- 
tle there. Charlestown, where 
Winthrop had first settled, had 
shoal water, while ships of any size 
might come up to Boston. Win- 
throp took down the frame of 
his house, and removed to Bos- 
ton. 
The Punishment of Quakers. — The laws of Massachusetts 
were very severe against all who taught other doctrines 
than those of the Puritans. After the other leaders were 
dead Endicott was repeatedly chosen governor. When 
some Friends, or Quakers, came to Massachusetts to preach 
their doctrines, Endicott dealt very harshly with them. 
They were extreme in dress and in speech. They were 
punished by banishment after being whipped at the 
cart's tail, and were warned not to return to the colony. 
They came back, however, and four of them, including one 
woman, were hanged. King Charles II. was very angry 
at this severity, and in 1661 he ordered it stopped. It is 
only fair to say that the majority of the people of Boston op- 
posed the executions. 

• For biography, see Appendix. 




John Winthrop 



OTHER NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENTS 6l 

Summary. — i. The Puritans wished to make reforms in the church of 
England, without leaving it. The Separatists left the church entirely 
and set up a worship of their own. 

2. Certain persecuted Separatists fled to Holland, and remained there 
thirteen years. Then, in company with others, they came to America, 
landing at Plymouth in December, 1620. 

3. They made a treaty of peace with the Indians, which was not 
broken for more than half a century. 

4. While the people lived from a common stock of food, they suf- 
fered much, and were often threatened with famine. When, at last, 
they were allowed to till the land, each for himself, they prospered, 
and others came out to join them. 

5. John White, an English clergyman, tried to establish a colony 
of fishermen left in America when their ships sailed for home with the 
catch of fish. The efTort failed. 

6. Moved by persecutions in England, the Puritans formed the Mas- 
sachusetts Company. They settled first at Salem, and Puritans from 
England came over in large numbers to join them. 

7. Charles I. (1629) gave the Massachusetts Company a charter giv- 
ing it the right to govern all colonies it should plant in America. The 
Puritans in England secretly removed the company and its charter to 
the Massachusetts colony, where the colonists by becoming members of 
the company could share in making their own laws. 

8. John Winthrop brought out one thousand people in 1630. Within 
the next ten years twenty thousand people were added to the colony. 

9. Endicott became governor. He bitterly persecuted the Friends, 
or Quakers, who came to Massachusetts, whipping them, banishing 
them, and hanging four of them. 

Collateral Reading. — Eggleston's "The Beginners of a Nation." 98- 
2ig; Fiske's " The Beginnings of New England," 50-139; Brooks's 
" Stories of the Old Bay State," 9-73. 



CHAPTER VIII 

OTHER NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENTS 

Maine and New Hampshire. — After the failure of the 
Pophani colony (p. 43) Sir Ferdinando Gorges and John 
Mason received a grant of all the region between the Merri- 
muc and Kennebec rivers, which was called Maine, meaning 



62 



SETTLEMENT 



the mainland. In 1623 David Thomson, a fisherman, set- 
tled at Little Harbor, on the Piscataqiia River, near its 
mouth. This was the first recorded settlement in New 
Hampshire. The first settlement in Maine was made at 
Pemaquid in 1625. 

Dover and Portsmouth. — Gorges in partnership with Ma- 
son obtained a private grant of a tract of land on Lake 
Champlain and Lake George. They called it Laconia. 
They organized a trading company, and sent over settlers 
in 1630 and afterwards. These established stations on the 
Piscataqua River, nitending to ascend it in boats, and then 
make their way by land to Laconia. They tried for three 
years in vain to find Lake Champlain. Failing in this, they 

gave up the enterprise, but 
the little stations on the 
Piscataqua remained and 
grew to be the towns of 
Dover and Portsmouth. 

Gorges and Mason after- 
wards divided their claims. 
Gorges took the portion 
east of the Piscataqua 
River which some years 
later was organized as the 
province of Maine. Mason 
gave his territory the 
name of New Hampshire. 
New Hampshire was after- 
wards several times joined 
to Massachusetts, but fin- 
ally separated from it in 
1692. Maine very early 
came under the govern- 
ment of Massachusetts, 
and was at last annexed to that colony under the charter 
of 1692. 

Connecticut. — The Dutch who had settled on Manhattan 




SCALE OF MILES 



20 40 60 



The first Mason and Gorges grant 



OTHER NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENTS 



63 







SCALE OF MILES 



Connecticut and Rhode Island 



Island claimed the western side of the Connecticut River 
valley, by virtue of an exploration made in 1614. In 1633 
they bought a part of that territory from the Indians, and set 
up a trading house 
there, near the site of 
Hartford. 

The people of Plym- 
outh had heard from 
Indians and fur traders 
of the advantages for 
trade and other occu- 
pations which this rich 
valley afforded. They 
conceived the idea of 
removing their entire colony to that region. During 
the summer in which the Dutch arrived on the Connecti- 
cut, a vessel was sent from Plymouth to that river, carry- 
ing some workmen and the frame of a house ready to be 
put up. Though threatened they were not attacked by the 
Dutch. They landed a few miles farther up the river, and 
set up their house where Windsor now stands. The year 
before, the patent for that region had passed into the hands 
of a new company in England, and in 1635 John Winthrop 
the younger, son of the Massachusetts governor, was sent 
over to build a fort at the mouth of the river to defend the 
region from intruders. He arrived just in time to drive 
away the Dutch, and built a fort there which was called 
" Saybrook," in honor of Lord Say and Sele and Lord 
Brook, the two most prominent members of the company 
which owned the grant. It was joined to Connecticut in 
1644. 

Settlement of Connecticut. — Some of the Puritans in Mas- 
sachusetts were not satisfied with the government of that 
colony. They thought all men should have votes, and not 
church members alone. They also wished to remove to 
some place where their cows would have more pasturage. 
In 1635 a few people from Dorchester and Watertown made 



64 SETTLEMENT 

their way to Connecticut, and began little settlements at 
Windsor and Wethersiield. 

In June of the next year (1636) the migration to the 
Connecticut valley from Newtown, now Cambridge, Massa- 
chusetts, began. The people sold their houses to new- 
comers from England, and set out overland, led by their 
pastor, Thomas Hooker.* It was a journey of only a hun- 
dred miles, but the emigrants had to cut a road through 
the forest for their wagons and their cattle. It took two 
weeks, therefore, for the company of one hundred persons 
to reach its destination near the place where Hartford now 
stands. During the same year a great part of the congre- 
gation of Dorchester, Massachusetts, came to join those 
who had begun a settlement at Windsor, and the congre- 
gation of Watertown removed to Wethersfield. In 1639, 
after the towns had governed themselves for two years, 
they drew up a written constitution which united them 
formally under a single government. Every man under 
this constitution had a right to vote without regard to his 
religion. For one hundred and eighty years — until long 
after the Revolution — the little republic thus formed lived 
under this constitution. 

Roger Williams and the Rhode Island Colony. — In 1636 
Roger Williams,* pastor of the church at Salem, gave of- 
fense to the authorities by preaching doctrines which they 
regarded as dangerous. He taught that every man has a 
right to worship God as he pleases, without interference 
by other men, or by the government. He called this 
" soul-liberty." He also held that America belonged to 
the Indians, and that the king of England had no right 
to grant the land to anybody. The authorities ordered 
Williams to quit the colony at once and go back to Eng- 
land. 

Instead of doing so he fled through the wilderness to the 
head of Narragansett Bay, and there took refuge with Mas- 
sasoit, the chief of the Wampanoags. He secured land from 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



OTHER NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENTS 



65 




Roger Williams in Massasoit's wigwam 



the Indians, and founded 
the town of Providence. 
Under his rule every man 
had entire religious lib- 
erty. The settlement thus 
established was perhaps 
the first one in the world 
founded on these prin- 
ciples. It was the begin- 
ning of the Rhode Island 
colony. 

Mrs. Anne Hutchinson. 
— The year after Roger 
Williams was banished 
from Salem, a gifted 
woman, Mrs. Anne Hutch- 
inson, was excommuni- 
cated from the church at 

Boston, and banished from the town because of her relig- 
ious views and teachings. She had held meetings in Bos- 
ton, which were attended by all the influential women of 
the place, and had there taught doctrines which the pastors 
of the churches strongly disapproved. When she was driven 
from Boston, she made her way with a party of her friends 
to the island of Rhode Island, which was then called Aquid- 
neck. There she and her friends founded the town of 
Portsmouth. Other exiles for conscience' sake went to 
Narragansett Bay and made settlements. These were 
finally united into one colony, which afterwards became the 
State of Rhode Island. 

The New Haven Colony. — In 1638 a company of Puritans 
from England established a colony thirty miles west of the 
Connecticut River. They had no grant or charter from 
king or company, but depended upon an Indian deed for 
their land title. The first settlement, begun in 1638, was 
two years afterward named New Haven. In 1662 New 
Haven and its dependencies were joined to Connecticut. 

5— Egg. Hist. 



66 



SETTLEMENT 



The Pequot War. — The Pequot Indians living in Con- 
necticut drove away another tribe which also lived there, 
and then sold their lands along the Connecticut River to 
the Dutch. The English settlers objected to this. They 
brought back the Indians whom the Pequots had driven 
away, and built a fort to protect thehi. The English wished 
to buy from these Indians the lands which the Pequots had 




Slaughter of the Pequots 

sold to the Dutch. The Pequots grew angry, and began 
killing English traders and making raids on the Connecticut 
settlers, torturing to death all whom they could catch. In 
1637 Captain Mason, with a company of Connecticut and 
Massachusetts men, was sent into the Pequot country. The 
Pequot chief, Sassacus, had a village at Mystic, in Con- 
necticut. It was defended by a strong paHsade. At day- 
break, while the savages were asleep, the white men sur- 
rounded the village and set fire to it. The Indians were 



OTHER NEW ENGLAND SETTLEMENTS 6/ 

panic stricken and made no organized defense. In less than 
two hours about seven hundred Indians — men, women, and 
children — had perished. Some were burned to death in their 
wigwams, and some were shot while trying to escape. A 
war of extermination against the rest of the tribe followed, 
and Indians of other tribes were frightened into keeping the 
peace with the English for many years. 

' The United Colonies of New England. — In 1643 there ap- 
peared at Boston delegates from Plymouth, Connecticut, 
and New Haven, and a confederation of the New England 
colonies was formed. The purpose of this union of the 
four little states was to provide for mutual defense. The 
Rhode Island and Maine people wanted to join, but were 
forbidden because of their religious views. So far in those 
days did people carry their religious differences into public 
affairs. 

King Philip's War. — So long as Massasoit lived the Wam- 
panoags remained at peace with the Plymouth settlers ; but 
when his son Philip became chief of the tribe, serious diffi- 
culties arose. Philip was angry because the white men were 
slowly taking possession of his hunting grounds, and also 
because many of his people had been converted to the white 
man's religion. These converts were called " praying In- 
dians," and they lived in separate villages under the general 
control and government of the Plymouth and Massachusetts 
colonies. 

In 1675 '^^'^1" broke out. The Wampanoags, led by Philip, 
attacked several villages belonging to the Plymouth colony, 
burned them, killed many of the inhabitants, and carried 
others into captivity. The Narragansetts aided Philip se- 
cretly at first, and this angered the white men against them. 
In December the colonists made a sudden attack on the 
Narragansett fort, which stood on a piece of rising ground 
in the midst of a swamp. Hundreds of the Indians were 
killed, and their village was burned. This was called the 
Swamp Fight. The colonists lost two hundred men, and 
by this attack made open enemies of the entire tribe. 



68 SETTLEMENT 

Driven from their homes, the Narragansetts scattered over 
the country, kilhng white people, and burning towns wher- 
ever they went. 

For a time the white men fell into one ambush after an- 
other, and were slain by scores. But after a while they 
learned how to fight the Indians. Finally, in 1676, they 
drove Philip to hide himself in a swamp with a few of his 
men, and one of them betrayed his hiding-place to Captain 
Church, who promptly surrounded it. In the fight that fol- 
lowed Philip was killed. The rest of the Indians were soon 
subdued. 

In this war more than two thousand Indians were killed, 
and many were captured and sold into slavery in the Eng- 
lish West Indies. In Massachusetts and Plymouth more 
than half the towns were wholly or partly destroyed, and 
more than one tenth of all the men of military age were 
slain or made prisoners by the Indians. The little colonies 
were long in recovering from their losses. 

Summary. — i. The region between the Merrimac and the Kennebec 
was granted to Gorges and Mason. They divided their claims. Gorges 
took the eastern part, which later became Maine; Mason took the west- 
ern part, which became New Hampshire. 

2. The English settlement of the Connecticut valley began in 1634. 
Hartford was founded in 1636. The same year Williams set up a 
refuge for the persecuted at Providence. 

3. New Haven was settled in 1638 by a company of Puritans, but had 
no royal charter or grant. In 1662 the several towns of this settlement 
were joined to Connecticut. 

4. A war with the Pequot Indians lasted two years and closed after 
Mason's fight at Mystic in 1637. 

5. In 1643, Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connecticut, and New Haven 
joined in a confederation for mutual defense. 

6. The power of the Indians under King Philip was broken in the 
Swamp Fight in 1676. 

Collateral Reading Eggleston's "The Beginners of a Nation," 166, 

167, 176-181, 208-211, 315, 316; Andrews's "The History of the United 
States," I., 37-46; Higginson's "A Book of American Explorers," 312- 
319, 32S-337- 



NEW YORK AND MARYLAND 



69 



CHAPTER IX 



NEW YORK AND MARYLAND 



Hudson the Explorer. — Henry Hudson * was an English- 
man well known as a fearless mariner, who had gone farther 
north than any other explorer up to his time. Captain 
John Smith, of Virginia, who was a friend of Hudson's, was 
told something by the Indians which led him to believe 
that there was a passage into the Pacific Ocean somewhere 
north of Chesapeake Bay. He sent Hudson a letter and 
a map on which such a passage was shown a little to the 
north of Virginia. Soon after getting the map, Hudson 
entered the service of the Dutch East India Company. This 
company sent him out in command of a little ship called 
the " Half Moon " to find a passage to China by sailing 
around the northern coast of Europe. 
He was instructed not to go to 
America, but finding himself so be- 
set with ice that he could go no 
farther northeast, he remembered 
Smith's map, and turned his course 
to America. He explored the coast 
systematically. 

Hudson River. — Beginning near the 
mouth of the Chesapeake, he went 
northward, examining every inlet and 
river mouth. He went into Delaware 
Bav. and next into what is now New 
York Harbor. This was in 1609. He 
pushed on up the Hudson River as 
far as Albany, meeting Indians, 
and having many romantic adventures with them. He sent 
a boat still farther up the river, until he became satisfied that 
the route to China was not to be found there. Then he 
gave up the search and returned to Europe. 

* For biography, see Appendix. 





j„^^„^J/A T L A N T IC 
OCEAN 



New Netherland 



70 SETTLEMENT 

Hudson had found the Indians eager to trade, and in the 
next year the " Half Moon," with some of Hudson's men 
in her crew, came back to the river he had discovered. 
Other traders came in 1611. The fur trade was profitable 
from the first. 

The Dutch West India Company. — Those Dutch merchants 
who first sent out ships to trade with the Indians wished to 
keep others away from the seat of their valuable traffic. 
They organized a company, and got a charter from the 
Government of Holland giving them exclusive rights for 
three years to trade in the Hudson River region, which 
they called New Netherland. At the end of that time the 
Dutch West India Company was chartered, and to it was 
given a monopoly of trade and government in all the Dutch 
possessions in America. 

Trading Posts and Settlements. — The Dutch had early 
established three trading posts on the Hudson — one near 
Albany, one on Manhattan Island, and one between these 
two. The island of Manhattan soon became the chief center 
of their trade with the Indians. In 1614 a fort was built 
at the south end of it and called Fort Amsterdam. The 
settlement which grew up about it was later called New 
Amsterdam, after the principal city in Holland. 

The Dutch did not send out any colonists until 1623. 
Two settlements were made at first — one at Fort Orange, 
now Albany, and the other at Wallabout, now a part of the 
Borough of Brooklyn in New York city. In the year 1626 
Peter Minuit came over as governor of New Netherland. 
He bought Manhattan Island from the Indians for twenty- 
four dollars' worth of trinkets. He is called the founder of 
New York city, which began its existence as New Amster- 
dam. 

Patroons — In order to promote emigration to New 
Netherland the Dutch West India Company decided to 
give special privileges to those who should establish settle- 
ments there at their own expense. Any member of the 
company who should bring over fifty persons above fifteen 



NEW YORK AND MARYLAND Jl 

years of age, and settle them on the land, was to become 
the proprietor of a tract extending sixteen miles on one side 
of a river, or eight miles on both sides, and as far back into 
the country as he pleased. It was also provided that he 
should have the rights and power of a lord of the manor, 
with the title of " Patroon." He must buy the lands from 
the Indians, and he must provide the colonists with all that 




Purchase of Manhattan Island by Peter Minuit 



was necessary for farming. The colonist must remain on 
the land for ten years, and must pay rent to his patroon. 
New Sweden. — The Dutch West India Company had made 
one or two attempts to plant colonies on the Delaware 
River, but in 1632 no Europeans occupied the banks of 
that stream. A new company was formed, with a charter 
from Sweden, although Sweden had no claim to any land 
in America. Under this Swedish charter Protestants of 
any nation might be shareholders in the company, and dis- 
contented members of the Dutch West India Company had 



72 SETTLEMENT 

a hand in its organization. In 1638 the first colonists were 
sent over, and a " fort " was erected near the present city 
of Wihnington, Delaware. 

Peter Minuit, who had left or lost his place as governor 
of the colony at Manhattan, was made governor of this 
Swedish colony. The knowledge he had gained in govern- 
ing New Netherland enabled him to send large cargoes of 
furs to Sweden. The Dutch objected to this occupation of 
their territory, and they rebuilt Fort Nassau, which lay a 
little below the present city of Philadelphia, on the New 
Jersey side of the river. There was constant trouble be- 
tween the Swedish and. Dutch colonies, and in 1655 Peter 
Stuyvesant * (sti'ves-ant), governor of New Amsterdam, 
sailed to the Delaware with 'seven hundred men and took 
possession of the region, which the intruders had named 
" New Sweden." 

The Indian War of 1643. — In 1643 the Indians of Long 
Island and the Hudson River united in a war against the 
colonists of New Netherland. Many of the Dutch fled from 
New Amsterdam to Fort Orange, now Albany, while all 
who could do so went back to Holland. This war lasted 
for two years, and about sixteen hundred Indians perished 
in it. At last the Iroquois, who wished to trade with the 
Dutch, brought about a peace between them and their 
Indian neighbors. 

The English Claim. — Some time after this the English set 
up a claim that all the territory between Maryland and New 
England belonged to Great Britain. They based this claim 
on the discoveries of Cabot (p. 25). Holland was not a 
very powerful nation, and her settlements in America were 
widely scattered. She had more territory than her colo- 
nists could hold and defend. Besides all this, the Dutch 
colony had been settled partly by Englishmen and partly 
by adventurers of other nations. These were naturally not 
to be depended upon by the Dutch in their dispute with 
England. 

• For biography, see Appendix. 



NEW YORK AND MARYLAND 73 

New Netherland Seized by the English. — In 1664, in a time 
of peace, an English fleet entered the harbor of New Am- 
sterdam and demanded 
the surrender of the 

city. Peter Stiiyve- -. 

sant, the governor, { 

wished to resist, but '^J' ' >/ 

the city had no forti- ^ "^ \ 1 [ 

fications, and the peo- _>- •"'~^'i-~'^ ^^-\^'' ^^. ^\s-% 

pie persuaded him to 
surrender. The names 
of New Netherland 
and New Amsterdam 
were changed to New 

York in honor of New Amsterdam in Stuyvesant's time 

James, Duke of York, 

to whom the province had been given by his brother. King 
Charles II. In 1673 the Dutch retook New Amsterdam, 
but they gave it up to Great Britain again in the next year. 
The village had then about fifteen hundred inhabitants, 
mostly Dutch. 

The Settlement of Maryland. — During the same period in 
which the Dutch settled and lost New York, another ex- 
periment in colonizing was going on in what we now call 
Maryland. George Calvert, Secretary of State to James 
I., was a member of the Virginia Company, and later be- 
came one of the councilors for New England. He sent a 
colony to Newfoundland. A few years later he resigned 
his secretaryship, and at the same time King James made 
him an Irish peer, as Baron Baltimore. He had become 
a Catholic, and after the accession of Charles I. he went to 
his colony in Newfoundland, taking with him a company of 
Catholic settlers. 

Illness and the severity of the climate led him to abandon 
Avalon, as he called his Newfoundland colony, and go to 
Virginia. He had written to King Charles, asking for land 
there. Perhaps this became known, or perhaps the Vir- 



74 



SETTLEMENT 



ginians, who were intensely Protestant, disliked him simply 
because of his Catholicism ; at any rate, they demanded that 
he should take an oath acknowledging the king as the head 
of the Church. As a Catholic, Lord Baltimore could not 
do this. He was, therefore, ordered to leave Virginia. 

The Second Lord Baltimore's Charter. — Lord Baltimore 
returned to England, and got the king, Charles L, to give 
him a part of Virginia north of the Potomac for a colony, 
to be called Maryland, in honor of the queen, Henrietta 
Maria, or Mary. But before the charter w^as sealed Lord 
Baltimore died, in 1632, and the territory was then granted 
to his son Cecil Calvert,* the second Lord Baltimore. The 
grant extended from the Potomac to the fortieth parallel 
of latitude, and from Delaware Bay westward to a north and 
south line running from the sources of the Potomac to the 

northern boundary. 
Within this territory 
Lord Baltimore might 
coin money, declare 
war, make peace, enact 
laws, and exercise all 
sovereisfn risfhts. 



The Maryland Colony. 

— Lord Baltimore's 
colonists crossed the 
ocean in two ships, 
called the " Ark " and 
the " Dove," and in 
March, 1634, they 
landed near the mouth 
of the Potomac River, 
They bought the village 




Maryland by the original grant to Lord 
Baltimore 



where an Lidian village stood 

and some corn fields from the Indians. 

The colony consisted of about two hundred laboring 
men and servants, and twenty " gentlemen," with Leonard 
Calvert, brother of the proprietor, at their head. It was in- 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



NEW YORK AND MARYLAND 75 

tended that Maryland should be a Catholic colony, and 
serve as a refuge from the persecutions which Catholics then 
suffered in England ; but Lord Baltimore meant that there 
sliould be toleration for all forms of Christian belief in his 
province. 

The colonists laid out a town where they first settled, 
and called it St. Marys. For some years Lord Baltimore's 
authority was resisted by persons who had come from Vir- 
ginia to the region granted to him. William Claiborne, 
of Virginia, had made a settlement on Kent Island, in 
Maryland, and he now refused to submit to the new pro- 
prietor. After a struggle he was driven away. Puri- 
tans who came from Virginia, where they were persecuted, 
to enjoy the tolerance of Lord Baltimore, refused to take the 
oath of allegiance to him. At one time these Puritans man- 
aged to gain the ascendency in the colony, and passed an 
anti-Catholic law. Three years later the Catholics again 
got control, and kept it until the time of William and Mary 
in England. Maryland then became Protestant, but not 
wholly intolerant. The Catholics were at that time only 
about one twelfth of the population. Among them were 
many of the best people of the province. 

Summary. — i. Henry Hudson, in the service of Holland, sailed up the 
Hudson to Albany in 1609, and found a great opportunity for trade in 
furs with the Indians. 

2. Dutch traders immediately availed themselves of this opportunity, 
calling the country New Netherland, and establishing three trading 
posts — one at Albany, one lower down, and one on Manhattan Island, 
which grew into a settlement called New Amsterdam. 

3. In 1623 the Dutch West India Company was chartered, with a 
monopoly both of trade and government. Peter Minuit came out in 
1626 as governor. He bought Manhattan Island from the Indians for 
twenty-four dollars in trinkets. 

4. The company offered rich grants of land to persons who should 
bring out colonies. These colonizers were to be called " Patroons." 

5. A company chartered by Sweden undertook to establish a colony 
on the Delaware River, but Peter Stuyvesant, Governor of New Nether- 
land, broke up this settlement in 1655. 

6. In 1664 an English fleet seized upon New Netherland and made 
the colony an English one, naming it New York. 



76 



SETTLEMENT 



7. In 1634 a new colony was founded in Maryland by Cecil Calvert, 
the second Lord Baltimore, as a refuge from persecution for English 
Catholics. 

8. This colony had no Indian troubles, but the jealous Virginians 
under Claiborne resisted the colonists at first. The founders, though 
Catholics, tolerated settlers of all Christian faiths. 

Collateral Reading. — Theodore Roosevelt's " New York," 5-1 1. 38- 
42, 45-48; Eggleston's " Beginners of a Nation," 228-230, 236-238, 241- 
243; Andrews's " History of the United States," I., 48-61. 



CHAPTER X 

THE CAROLINAS 



mho- ■._._ 



The Long Pause. — During the years following the settle- 
ment of Maryland England was disturbed by the great re- 
bellion under Crom- 
well and there was a 
long pause in the 
work of colonization. 
But in 1663 a large 
region cut off from 
Virginia on the south 
was granted to eight 
courtiers by Charles 
II. It included the 
territory that is now 
North and South 
Carolina and Georgia. 
The Name Carolina. 
— This region was 
sometimes spoken of 
as South Virginia, 
and sometimes as Carolina (p. 34). The lords proprietors, 
to whom it was now granted, retained the name Carolina 
as a compliment to King Charles. 

The First Settlement. — There was already a small party 




Carolina by the grant of 1665 



THE CAROLINAS 77 

of settlers living on Albemarle Sound, near the northeast 
corner of Carolina. These were settlers who had come from 
Virginia under the lead of an adventurous minister named 
Roger Green, and their settlement was the first permanent 
one in North Carolina. The new proprietors organized it 
as the Albemarle Colony, naming it forone of their number, 
the Duke of Albemarle. 

The Second Settlement. — In 1663 Sir John Yeamans 
brought a company from Barbados, and settled on the Cape 
Fear River, where he had obtained a grant of land from 
the proprietors. This settlement was later called the Clar- 
endon Colony, in honor of another of the proprietors, the 
Earl of Clarendon. It was broken up within ten years by 
the removal of the settlers to various places. 

Settlement in South Carolina. — In 1670 William Sayles 
was sent over from England with three ships carrying col- 
onists. They landed at Port Royal, in South Carolina, and 
began a settlement, but soon removed to the south bank of 
the Ashley River. Here they founded a town and named 
it Charles Town, in honor of Charles II. Ten years later 
the colony changed its location to the north bank of the 
Ashley River, and there established a new town, the present 
city of Charleston. This was the first permanent settle- 
ment in South Carolina. The whole colony at this time 
bore the name of Carteret, in honor of one of the pro- 
prietors. Sir George Carteret. The name of Charles Town 
was changed to Charleston at the end of the American 
Revolution. 

Other Settlers. — In 1674 many settlers came from New 
Amsterdam to Carolina. They became an important ele- 
ment in the population. French Protestants came also in 
great numbers, and Protestant Irish in still greater multi- 
tudes. North Carolina was largely settled from Virginia, 
and yet more largely by settlers who came in from Ireland 
and Scotland. 

The Constitution of Carolina. — The lords proprietors 
foolishly tried to force upon the little woodland settle- 



78 



SETTLEMENT 



ments of Carolina a constitution they had prepared in Eng- 
land with the assistance of the philosopher John Locke. 
But the constitution worked badly or not at all, and after 
a while it was given up. The proprietors, living in Eng- 
land, managed the colonies wholly for their own profit, and 
their government was greatly disliked by the people. 

The Culture of Rice. — In 1696 a man named Thomas 
Smith got some Madagascar seed rice from the captain of a 
ship, and planted it in his garden at Charles 
Town. From this beginning came the culture 
of rice in South Carolina, where that grain 
reached a perfection nowhere else known in the 
world, and became one of Carolina's greatest 
products. 

The Culture of Indigo. — Eliza Lucas (after- 
wards Mrs. Pinckney), when only sixteen years 
old, was left in charge of her father's planta- 
tions near Charles Town while he was absent 
in the West Indies. About 1739 she began 
trying to grow indigo. After losing one crop 
by frost, and having another cut down by 
worms, she succeeded in bringing the plants 
to perfection. But the expert sent by her 
father from the West Indies to manufacture 
the dye purposely ruined it, because he thought 
the trade of his island would suffer if Carolina 
should produce indigo. Still Miss Lucas per- 
severed, and by 1745 the new industry was 
established, and two years later two hundred thousand 
pounds of the dye were shipped to England. Indigo was a 
leading product of South Carolina for about forty-five 
years, or until after the invention of the cotton gin. Then 
cotton took its place. 

Indian Wars in the Carolinas. — In 1670, the year in which 
Charles Town was settled, the Westoes Indians attacked 
the colonists and nearly destroyed them. The Indians 
of North Carolina were a warlike Iroquois tribe called Tus- 




Rice 



THE CAROLINAS 



79 




caroras. In 171 1 they ravaged the 
borders of the province, putting 
people to death cruelly. The v^^ar 
lasted for two years. Then with 
the aid of Virginia and South Caro- 
lina and some friendly Indians, the 
Tuscaroras were beaten. Some 
were captured and sold as slaves to 
the West Indies. But many escaped 
through the trackless forests to 
New York, where they became the 
sixth nation in the Iroquois con- 
federacy. 

In 171 5 the Spaniards in Florida 
stirred up the Indians from Florida 
to Cape Fear against the South 
Carolina colonists. A league was 
formed to destroy all the settle- 
ments in the province, and six or Indigo 
seven thousand Indian warriors 

were engaged in the plot. Among them were the Yemas- 
sees, who had helped the North Carolina colonists defeat the 
Tuscaroras two years before. South Carolina had only a 
little army of seventeen hundred men with which to oppose 
the Indians, and two hundred of this small force were 
negroes. The war lasted about three years, and then the 
Indians w-ere driven from the province. 

North and South Carolina. — The whole of Carolina was 
considered one province, but the territofy was so large that 
the northern and southern portions were governed sepa- 
rately. The South Carolina colonists contended for their 
rights for years, and finally in 17 19 they rose in rebellion 
against the rule of the lords proprietors, and asked the 
English Government to protect them. A royal governor 
was sent over two years later, and in 1729, the king having 
bought out the interest of the proprietors. North and South 
Carolina were established as s'eparate royal colonies. 



8o SETTLEMENT 

Summary.— I. After the settlement of Maryland in 1634, there was a 
pause in colonization until the beginning of the Carolinas in 1663, when 
the Duke of Albemarle, Earl Clarendon, and others received a grant of 
that region from King Charles II. 

2. Roger Green had begun a little settlement ten years earlier 
in North Carolina. 

3. A colony was planted at Port Royal in 1670. It was twice re- 
moved, and finally established (1680) where the city of Charleston is 
now located. 

4. In 1696 the culture of rice was begun in South Carolina. 

5. There were Indian wars in the Carolinas in 1680, 171 1, and 1715. 

6. In 1719 the South Carolina colonists rebelled against the lords 
proprietors, and in 1729 Carolina was divided into two colonies, both 
under royal government. 

7. In 1745 the culture of indigo was established. 

Collateral Reading. — Bancroft's "History of the United States I., 
484-489, 509-514, 517-520. 



CHAPTER XI 

NEW JERSEY AND PENNSYLVANIA 

New Jersey. — When the Duke of York came into posses- 
sion of New Netherland he transferred that part of it which 
lay between the Hudson and Delaware rivers to Lord 
Berkeley and Sir George Carteret, and gave it the name of 
New Jersey in honor of Carteret, who had been governor 
of the island of Jersey in the English Channel. Philip Car- 
teret was appointed governor of the province, and he came 
over in 1665 with thirty persons to plant a colony. Except 
for a few Dutch villages on the Hudson,. and a few families 
at Navesink, there were at that time only four families in 
New Jersey. These had just founded Elizabethtown, which 
became Carteret's capital. There he landed, and marched 
into the town with a hoe on his shoulder. The proprietors 
of New Jersey promised all who should come freedom of 
worship and other liberties. This promise brought many 
settlers to the colony. 



NEW JERSEY AND PENNSYLVANIA 




New Jersey, Pennsylvania, 
and Delaware 



Lord Berkeley, who held half of New Jersey under Eng- 
lish title, sold his interest in 1674, and two years later it 
passed into the hands of William 
Penn and two other Quakers, or 
Friends, as agents. The province 
was then divided, giving to these 
Friends West Jersey, and to Sir 
George Carteret East Jersey. In 
1682 East Jersey passed into the 
hands of William Penn and eleven 
other Quakers. 

The sale and division of shares 
in East and West Jersey went on, 
and the proprietors were soon too 
numerous to manage their govern- 
ment. Disorders arose which they 
could not suppress, and in 1702 
they asked Queen Anne to take 
charge of the province. So East and West Jersey were 
again united into a single colony. 

William Penn's Colony. — Next to George Fox, William 
Penn * was the most influential member of the Society of 
Friends. His connection with the afTairs of West Jersey 
turned his attention to America as a refuge for those whose 
religious opinions were not tolerated in England. He con- 
ceived the idea of establishing a colony wholly under his 
own government where there might be simplicity of life and 
freedom of worship for all. 

Just across the Delaware River from New Jersey was a 
territory occupied only by a few Swedes. In 1681 William 
Penn secured from the king, Charles II., a grant of forty 
thousand square miles of this territory in payment of a 
claim he held against the king for money due to his father. 
The king named the province Pennsylvania — Latin for 
Penn's woods — in honor of Admiral William Penn, who 
had distinguished himself in the wars between England and 

Holland. ♦ For biography, see Appendix. 

6 — Egg. Hist. 



82 



SETTLEMENT 



The Transfer of Del- 
aware. — Penn sent 
his first emigrants 
to Pennsylvania in 
1 68 1. They landed 
where Philadelphia 
now stands. 

Penn bought 
Delaware from the 
Duke of York, so 
that his colonists 
could always pass 
through the bay to 
the sea. In 1682 
Penn himself came 
over with one hun- 
dred Friends from 
England, many of 
whom had been his 
neighbors there. 
Late in October he 
landed at New Castle, Delaware. On the day after his land- 
ing the government was formally transferred to him by the 
Duke of York's agent in the presence of a crowd of English, 
Dutch, and Swedes, who had assembled to welcome the 
" Quaker king." The key of the fort was delivered to him, 
and he went in and locked the door. Then he unlocked it 
and came out. This was to signify that he was master 
of the place. A piece of sod with a twig stuck into it was 
handed to him, and also a porringer filled with water from 
the river. This signified that the land with its forests and 
also the streams flowing through it were made over to Penn. 
Philadelphia. — A site for the capital city had been chosen 
before Penn arrived, and a residence for him had been be- 
gun by his commissioners. Penn wished to build a " green 
country town " with a garden about each house, and he 
chose for it the name of Philadelphia, which means " broth- 




William Penn 



NEW JERSEY AND PENNSYLVANIA 



83 



erly love." The town was laid out in 1682, about a month 
before Penn landed, but it is commonly said to have been 
founded in 1683. Before a year had passed, Philadelphia 
contained one hundred and fifty houses, most of them rudely 
built. In two years more the houses numbered three hun- 
dred and fifty-seven, many of them being three stories high, 
and well built. Before the Revolution Philadelphia had 
become the largest town in the colonies. 

Penn's Government. — In December, 1682, representatives 
of the people assembled at Chester and organized a gov- 
ernment. The right to vote was given to every man who 
paid his taxes, and Christians of any denomination might 
hold of^ce. People of other nations were allowed the same 
privileges that were given to Englishmen, and no law could 
be made without the 
consent of the people. .......,«^. - 

This liberal govern- 
ment attracted many 
settlers, and Pennsyl- 
vania soon became the 
most populous of the 
colonies, and one of 
the richest. 

Penn's Treaty with 
the Indians. — \\ illiam 
Penn respected the 
rights of the Indians, 
and wished to gain 
their confidence. On 
June 23, 1683, he met 
the principal chiefs of 

the Delawares under a large elm tree, on the shore of the 
Delaware River, at a place called Shackamaxon, just north 
of Philadelphia. Though the object of the meeting was 
the purchase of land from the Indians, Penn made it the 
occasion of a treaty of friendship. He explained to the 
savages the Quaker doctrines of justice and good will to 




'i^PS'^FSS^St^ 



Penn's house in Philadelphia 



84 SETTLEMENT 

all men, and asked for their friendship. The Indians prom- 
ised to " live in love with William Penn and his children,"- 
meaning- the people under his government, and so long as 
he lived no Indian ever killed a Quaker. 




Wampum belt given to Penn by the Indians 

Mason and Dixon's Line. — Maryland as granted to Lord 
Baltimore included a part of the land afterward granted to 
William Penn. This led to a dispute which lasted nearly 
one hundred years. In 1763 two English surveyors were 
employed to run a dividing line between the two colonies. 
This line was called from their names. Mason and Dixon's 
line. The surveyors were prevented by the Indians from 
completing their work, but their line was afterward ex- 
tended to the western limit of Pennsylvania. This line 
later became famous as the division between the free and 
the slave-holding States of our Union, and the name of it 
was popularly applied to the dividing line farther west. 

Sxmimary. — i. The Duke of York in 1664 transferred New Jersey to 
Lord Berkeley and Sir George Carteret. Under a promise of reHgious 
• Hberty, discontented persons came in great numbers to the new colony; 
but troubles arising, the proprietors transferred the Jerseys to Queen 
Anne in 1702. 

2. William Penn, an English Quaker, secured from the king in 1681 
a grant of the country now called Pennsylvania. 

3. Penn's first emigrants landed where Philadelphia now stands 
(1681). 

4. Having bought Delaware, Penn came over in 1682. He founded 
Philadelphia. The town grew rapidly, and before the American Revo- 
lution it had become the largest city in the colonies. Penn bought 
the land from the Indian chiefs and made with them a treaty of peace, 
which was not violated while he lived. 

5. Penn's government was liberal, allowing foreigners equal rights 



THE FOUNDING OF GEORGIA 



85 



with Englishmen, allowing every man to vote, and securing religious 
liberty to all. 

6. A boundary dispute having arisen between Pennsylvania and 
Maryland, two surveyors named Mason and Dixon (1763) ran a divid- 
ing line, which afterwards became famous as the dividing line between 
the free and slave States. 

Collateral Reading. — Bancroft's "History of the United States," I., 
loo-iio, 12J-125, 128-129; Eggleston's "Household History of the United 
States," 58-62. 



CHAPTER XII 



THE FOUNDING OF GEORGIA 




German Immigration. — Germany had sent 
more emigrants to America than any other 
country on the Continent of Europe. A few 
Germans came with the Jamestown Colony, 
and a few with the earher Puritan colonists. 
But the beginning- of the flood of German im- 
migration was when William Penn's colony 
was established, offering liberty of 
worship and freedom from military 
service. There were many little 
Protestant sects in Germany at that 
time, and they were much persecuted. 
Some of them, like the Friends, were 
opposed to war. In 1685 Germantown, now a 
part of Philadelphia, was laid out by Germans who 
had been in the colony for about two years. The 
tide of immigration became greater and greater, 
thousands of Germans coming to Pennsylvania to 
escape the miseries brought upon them by per- 
secution and by the wars that desolated their 
country. 

In Queen Anne's reign thirteen thousand poor people 
from the Palatinate of the lower Rhine fled to England 



German coun- 
trywoman of 
that time 




German coun- 
tryman of that 
time 



86 



SETTLEMENT 




Irishwoman 
of that time 



within three years and asked to l)e sent to America. These 
people were called Palatines. Some of them were sent to 
Virginia, some to the Carolinas, and some to 
Maryland. In 1709 a great number came to 
New York, but were not fairly dealt with there. 
Hearing that Germans were well received in 
Pennsylvania, three hundred of these refugees 
made their way into that province. From that 
time forward the Germans crowded into Penn- 
sylvania and avoided New York. 

Irish Immigration. — Most of the Irish who 
came to America before the Revolution were 
Presbyterians, commonly called " Scotch-Irish." 
This emigration increased or decreased as the 
linen industry in Ireland was poor or grew bet- 
ter. About 1 718 some Irish immigrants 
came to New England, where they intro- 
duced the spinning of flax and the plant- 
ing of potatoes. There was no colony 
to which the Irish did not go, but more 
went to Pennsylvania than to any other. 
In 1729 five thousand Irish immigrants 
reached Philadelphia. The Irish were 
good Indian fighters, and they showed 
enterprise and courage in pushing into 
frontier regions. 

Huguenot Immigration. — Another great 
stream of immigration from Europe came 
from France. The Huguenots, or French 
Protestants, whose lives were made un- 
happy at home by the civil wars and 
persecutions of the time, came in large numbers to the dif- 
ferent colonies. They were obliged to get away from 
France secretly, leaving all their property behind them. 
There were so many of them in New Amsterdam in 1656 
that all public documents were issued in French as well as 
ia Dutch. The Huguenots settled in nearly every colony, 




Irishman of that 
time 



THE FOUNDING OF GEORGIA 



87 





Huguenot mer- 
chant's wife 



Huguenot mer- 
chant 



but South Carolina became their 
favorite place of refuge. 

Secondary Migrations. — The 
colonists, having broken loose 
from old associations in Europe, 
were constantly moving to and 
fro in this country in search 
of favorable conditions. Within 
a dozen years after the Puri- 
tans came to Massachusetts Bay 
they made settlements in all the 
present New England States ex- 
cept Vermont, and in ten years 
more they were intruding upon 
the Dutch about New Amsterdam. They went in great 
numbers to New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and to the 
other colonies. Virginians made settlements in Mary- 
land and in North Carolina. Many Dutch, discon- 
tented with English rule in New York, removed to 
South Carolina in 1671 and later, while some settled in 
Maine, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. When the later In- 
dian wars laid waste the frontiers of Pennsylvania in the 
eighteenth century, many of the German and more of the 
Irish settlers moved southward into western Virginia, and 
onward to the Carolinas. 

The Philanthropic Colony. — After the settlement of Penn- 
sylvania fifty-one years passed before another colony was 
begun. From the French possessions in Canada to the 
Spanish territory in Florida, the whole coast had been 
granted to English colonies ; but Spain claimed all of South 
Carolina as a part of Florida, and continued to stir up the 
Indians, who occupied most of the region, to make war on 
the little English settlements. 

James Oglethorpe,* an English general, thought it would 
be a good thing to take a part of the disputed territory and 
plant a military colony between the Carolina settlements 

* For biography, see Appendix. 




88 SETTLEMENT 

and Florida. In 1732 he secured a grant from King 
George 11. of that part of South Carohna which lay between 
the Savannah and Altamaha rivers. He 
named the region Georgia in honor of 
the king. It was not Oglethorpe's in- 
tention that the new colony should be a 
source of profit. He and his associates 
held the land " in trust for the poor." 

At that time people in England who 
could not pay their debts were thrown 
into prison. Oglethorpe's plan was to 
James Edward Oglethorpe satisfy the creditors of such of these pris- 
oners for debt as seemed most worthy, 
and send them out again to begin life anew in his colony. 
He put on the seal of the colony a Latin motto which meant, 
" Not for self, but for others," with silkworms engaged in 
spinning as a device. The seal had a double meaning. 
Oglethorpe meant to raise silkworms in Georgia, so that 
England might not need to buy silk from Italy. He also 
meant to make an unselfish colony. 

Oglethorpe's Colony. — Oglethorpe landed at Charles Town 
with one hundred and sixteen persons, and with these he 
began to build Savannah in 1733. Other colonists soon 
came out to him, among them a regiment of Scotch High- 
landers sent out to defend the border, some persecuted 
Protestants from Germany, and twenty families of Hebrews. 
Only Roman Catholics were excluded from the colony. 

Oglethorpe's Laws. — Oglethorpe treated the Indians fairly, 
and won their admiration by his calm endurance of hard- 
ships. They gave his colony little trouble. He sought 
only the good of the people, but his plan of government 
was not long pleasing to the colonists. They were not 
allowed any voice in the making of the laws. Each man 
had fifty acres of land assigned to him, but he could not sell 
it, rent it, or divide it among his children. At his death it 
passed to his eldest son ; if he had no son, it went to the 
trustees of the colony. No man could have more than fifty 



THE FOUNDING OF GEORGIA 89 

acres unless he brought in, at his own expense, white serv- 
ants enough to cultivate it. Negro slaves were forbidden, 
because Oglethorpe wanted his colony to be composed of 
hard-working white men who would keep up its military- 
strength. The people felt that such laws took away the 
motive for the improvement of their property, and many 
of them left the colony. In regard to slavery, the trustees 
yielded to the people in 1747. 

In 1752 they surrendered the government to the king, 
and Georgia remained a royal colony until the Revolution. 

Summary. — i. German immigrants came to all the colonies from the 
beginning. They came in great numbers to Penn's colony. 

2. The Irish who came to America introduced flax spinning into 
New England, and also the growing of potatoes. They came to all the 
colonies, but most of them to Pennsylvania. 

3. There was a considerable immigration of French Protestants 
called Huguenots. Most of them went to South Carolina, but each of 
the colonies received some of them. 

4. Throughout the colonial period there was much migration to 
and fro among the colonies. 

5. The last of the original colonies was founded by James Oglethorpe 
(1732) in Georgia. He rescued many poor people from debtors' prisons 
in England and brought them to Georgia to begin life anew. 

6. Oglethorpe began to build Savannah in 1733. He brought out a 
regiment of Scotch Highlanders to defend the border, and English, 
German and Jewish immigrants. But Roman Catholics were not 
allowed to enter the colony. 

7. Under Oglethorpe's rule the people had no voice in making their 
laws. They could not sell their lands, or rent them, or divide them 
among their children. Negro slaves were forbidden till 1747. In 1752 
Georgia became a royal province. '. 

Table of Settlements.^!. Virginia was settled at Jamestown by the 
English in 1607. 

2. Massachusetts was settled at Plymouth by the English in 1620. 

3. New Hampshire was settled at Portsmouth by the English in 1623. 

4. New York was settled at New Amsterdam, now New York city, 
by the Dutch in 1614. 

5. Maryland was settled at St. Marys by the English in 1634. 

6. Connecticut was settled at Wethersfield, Windsor, and Hartford 
by the English in 1634-1636. 

7. Rhode Island was settled at Providence by the English in 1636. 



90 SETTLEMENT 

8. Delaware was settled at Christiana, near Wilmington, by the 
Swedes in 1638. 

9. North Carolina was settled at Albermarle by the English in 1653. 

10. New Jersey was settled at Elizabethtown, now Elizabeth, by the 
English in 1664. 

11. South Carolina was settled at old Charles Town by the English 
in 1670. 

12. Pennsylvania was settled near Philadelphia by the English in 
1682. 

13. Georgia was settled at Savannah by the English in 1733. 
Collateral Reading. — Bancroft's " History of the United States," II., 

560-566; Andrews's " History of the United States," I., 118; Eggleston's 
"Household History of the United States," 63-69. 



CHAPTER XIII 

REBELLION AGAINST ENGLISH AUTHORITY 

New England under the Commonwealth. — In the same year 
in which the colonists of Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth, 
Connecticut, and New Haven formed a league under the 
title of " The United Colonies of New England," the great 
Puritan rebellion against Charles I. broke out in England, 
and emigration to New England very nearly ceased. From 
the beginning of Puritan ascendency to the restoration of 
the Stuarts in 1660, which brought Charles II. to the 
English throne, the New England colonies were left to 
carry on their affairs in their own way. 

New England and Other Colonies under Andros. — Massa- 
chusetts had become too independent to suit King Charles 
II. He therefore sent over commissioners to manage the 
government. The people would not submit to this, and 
the king resolved to take away their charter. This had been 
given by Charles I. (1629), and he intended it to be kept in 
England, but the colonists had secretly carried it to Amer- 
ica, as related on page 60. Charles II. had the charter an- 
nulled by the CoiuTs in England (1684). Six months later 
Charles II. died, and his l)rother, James II., became king. 

Sir Edmund Andros, who had before been governor of 



REBELLION AGAINST ENGLISH AUTHORITY 



91 




Andros demands the charter of Connecticut 

New York, was sent over by James during the next year 
to be governor of New England, New York, and New Jer- 
sey. Andros governed despotically, and tried to deprive 
the people of their rights. He levied taxes without the con- 
sent of the people, and he interfered with the liberty of the 
press. For all this he had the authority of the king. 

He had been instructed to get possession of the charters 
of Connecticut and Rhode Island, but he was unable to do 
so. It is related that the Connecticut Assembly prolonged 
the discussion with him till after dark, when the lights were 
suddenly blown out. When the candles were relighted the 
charter was gone. It had been carried off by Captain 
Joseph Wadsworth, and hidden in the hollow of an old oak 
tree. The tree was called the " Charter oak." 

In 1688 a revolution in England drove James II. from 
the throne. As soon as the people of New England heard 



92 SETTLEMENT 

of this they rose against Andros, threw him into prison, 
and the next year sent him back to England. 

Leisler's Rebellion. — James II. was succeeded on tlie throne 
by his eldest daughter, Mary, and her husband, William 
III., as joint sovereigns. This change brought about a col- 
lision between the plain people and the friends of James II. 
in New York. The latter were rich and aristocratic, and 
included all the officeholders. An armed mob gathered in 
the streets, and with loud cries hurried to the house of Jacob 
Leisler, demanding that he should lead them against Fort 
James. Under his lead they seized the fort, and a new 
government was organized, with him at its head. It was in- 
tended that this government should last until William and 
Mary could act. Leisler afterwards had himself proclaimed 
lieutenant-governor for the king, and he acted as such for 
nearly two years. He was a patriotic man, but was impru- 
dent and arbitrary. William and Mary took no notice of 
him, but sent over a new royal governor, whom Leisler 
resisted by force of arms. For this Leisler was arrested 
on a charge of treason and murder. The judges being his 
enemies, he was condemned and hanged. 

Virginia under Sir John Harvey. — When Virginia was made 
a royal colony in 1624, the king promised the people all the 
rights they had enjoyed before. In 1629 Sir John Harvey 
was sent over to Virginia as governor. He soon became 
greatly disliked. The Virginia Council forced him to go 
back to England to answer charges. King Charles would not 
yield to the wishes of the Virginians, and Harvey was sent 
back as governor in the next year. The people had to sub- 
mit to his rule for three years. Then the king removed him. 

Berkeley's Government. — The last governor of the Vir- 
ginia Colony appointed by Charles I. was Sir W^illiam 
Berkeley, who was sent over in 1642. He held the office till 
Virginia was brought under the authority of the Common- 
wealth (1649). Eleven years later the Virginia Assembly 
elected Berkeley governor, and Charles II., who soon after- 
wards became king, sent him a commission. 



REBELLION AGAINST ENGLISH AUTHORITY 93 

Berkeley ruled the colony in his own interest. He made 
a profit, largely illegal, from the fur trade, and wished to 
keep peace with the Indians lest the supply of furs should 
be cut off. When the Indians again began making war on 
the frontier settlements of Virginia (1676), the people ap- 
pealed in vain to Governor Berkeley to send soldiers to de- 
fend them. Thus forced to rely upon themselves, the peo- 
])le raised a little army of three hundred men for defense, 
but they had no leader. There was in the colony a young 
man named Nathaniel Bacon. He lived on a plantation 
about twenty miles below Richmond, not far from the In- 
dian frontier. He was a well-educated man of good family. 
Bacon was a member of the governor's council, and it was 
said of him that he was " acceptable in all men's company." 
Bacon's Rebellion. — The people wished to make this 
young man their leader in an expedition against the Indians, 
who were making depredations on the frontier. Bacon 
sympathized with the people, the more fully, perhaps, be- 
cause the Indians had destroyed his own crops, killed his 
cattle, and murdered his overseer, a favorite servant. He 
asked Governor Berkeley for a commission to fight the 
Indians, but Berkeley refused, and Bacon was unwilling to 
assume command without authority from the governor. 
Some prominent men persuaded him to visit the camp of 
the little band of volunteers, and as soon as he appeared, 
the cry was raised, " A Bacon ! " "A Bacon ! " " A 
Bacon ! " That was the old English way of choosing a 
leader, and Bacon yielded to the wishes of the people. 

At the head of his little army he marched against some 
Indians on the Roanoke River and overcame them. On 
returning he found himself proscribed as a rebel and de- 
posed from the governor's council. But the people sup- 
ported him, and soon they were nearly all in open rebellion. 
The governor was finally compelled to give Bacon a com- 
mission as major-general, but each time that Bacon set out 
to fight the Indians Governor Berkeley thwarted him. 

Bacon at last turned about and marched to Jamestown. 



94 



SETTLEMENT 




Bacon's army marches 
against the Indians 



The orovernor retired to 
his fleet, but waited in 
sight of the town. To pre- 
vent Jamestown from 
falHng again into Berke- 
ley's hands, Bacon's men 
set fire to the place, which 
consisted of a church and 
sixteen or eighteen widely 
scattered houses. 

Bacon's military conduct 
in every emergency was 
of the finest. Soon after 
taking Jamestown he fell 
ill and died. After various 
mistakes on the part of those who succeeded him in com- 
mand, his rebellion collapsed. The old governor's avarice was 
gratified by the estates he confiscated, and his revenge was 
glutted by hanging twenty-three men. At this point Charles 
II. recalled him in disgrace, and he soon afterward died. 

Summary. — i. During the Puritan ascendancy in England (1649-60) 
the colonies governed themselves. 

2. After Charles II. became king, he had the charter of Massa- 
chusetts annulled (1684). Sir Edmund Andros was sent over to govern 
New York, New England, and New Jersey. He tried to seize the 
charters of Connecticut and Rhode Island, but failed. 

3. When William and Mary ascended the English throne in 1688 the 
people of New England rose against Andros, imprisoned him, and sent 
him back to England. 

4. The people of New York also rose in rebellion, under one Jacob 
Leisler, seized upon the government and held it for two years, after 
which Leisler was hanged for treason and murder. 

5. In 1629 Sir John Harvey was sent over as governor of Virginia. 
His rule was greatly disliked. After three years he was removed. 

6. In 1642 Sir William Berkeley was sent to Virginia as governor. 
He lield the office till the time of Cromwell. When the Stuarts were 
restored, the Virginia Assembly elected Berkeley to be their governor, 
and King Charles II. sent him a commission. Berkeley ruled corruptly 
and refused protection against Indians. This led to Bacon's rebellion. 

Collateral Reading. — Parkman's "Montcalm and Wolfe," I., 25-35. 



INTERCOLONIAL WARS 



CHAPTER XIV 



THE PROGRESS OF NEW FRANCE 



The Occupation of Canada. — The settlement of Canada be- 
gan, as we have seen (p. 36), with the founding of Quebec 
by Champlain, 1608. Champlain was soon made governor 




Frenchmen trading with Indians 

of Quebec, and he held that office until his death, which 
occurred twenty-seven years after the founding of the city. 
French Influence over the Indians. — The great business of 
the French in Canada was trading with the Indians in furs, 
and they carried it on with an energy that left the traders 

95 



96 



INTERCOLONIAL WARS 



of the English colonies far behind. While the English were 
multiplying farming settlements, the French in Canada 
pushed their explorations into all the regions around the 
Great Lakes, partly for the sake of trade with the Indians, 
and partly in the hope of finding the long-sought water-way 
through the continent. 

From the first the French made friends with the Indians 
near them. French priests were sent over to convert the 
Indians to Christianity. Wherever the trader went, the 
priest went also, spending his days in the huts of the sav- 
ages, trying to teach them religion and win them to civil- 
ized ways. Through the trader and the priest the French 
were able to control most of the tribes. 

Marquette and Joliet. — Having made their way as far west 
as Wisconsin, setting up military posts and missionary 
houses as they went, the French heard from the Indians of 
a great river farther on. Joliet (zho-le-a) and Father 
Marquette (mar-ket), were sent to seek for it, and in June, 
1673, they reached the Mississippi River by way of the Wis- 
consin. In their birch-bark canoes they descen(^ed the Mis- 
sissippi nearly to the mouth of the Arkansas. They thought 
they were very near the Gulf of Mexico, and were afraid to 
go farther lest they should encounter Spaniards or Indians 

armed with guns. They turned 
back, therefore, and paddled up the' 
river, turning up the Illinois and 
carrying across the Chicago port- 
age to Lake Michigan, and arrived' 
at Green Bay about four months 
after the time of their setting out. 

La Salle. — In 1666 La Salle,* a 
young Frenchman, came to Canada 
in search of adventure and fortune, 
and three years later he went at 
his own expense in search of the 
Indian J^ll "fllTfflF """' to^eat river of which he had heard 

fur trader SS!^^^ ^g^ * For biography, see Appendix. 





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97 



98 INTERCOLONIAL WARS 

from the Indians. With the aid of Indian guides he 
reached the Ohio, and descended chat river as far as the 
rapids at Louisville. From that time La Salle cherished 
the idea of taking possession of the valley of the Mississippi 
for France. 

King Louis XIV. of France gave him a patent which 
authorized him to make discoveries and plant forts in the 
western part of New France. After many disasters and 
failures La Salle made another start late in the year 1681. 
In April of the next year he reached the mouth of the Mis- 
sissippi. He planted a column near the mouth, having on 
it the arms of France. He proclaimed to the Frenchmen 
and Indians assembled that he took possession, for France, 
of the country and all it contained. He named it Louisiana 
in honor of Louis XIV. His claim covered all the region 
along the Mississippi, from its source to its mouth, and also 
along all its tributaries. The upper Mississippi had been ex- 
plored during the year before by Father Hennepin, a Cath- 
olic missionary, who went as far up as the Falls of St. An- 
thony, which he named. 

The French and the Iroquois. — The year after Quebec was 
settled Champlain had helped his Indian allies to defeat 
their enemies, the Mohawks, in a battle on Lake Cham- 
plain. This made the whole Iroquois confederacy hos- 
tile to the French, because the Mohawks were one of the 
five nations of which that league was then composed. The 
Iroquois occupied central New York, and they were 
friendly to the Dutch and the English. They carried to 
Albany all the furs they could secure, and got blankets, 
guns, powder, brandy, and other things in exchange for 
them. 

The territory of the Iroquois did not yield enough beaver 
skins to pay for all the supplies they wanted, and after a 
while they planned to conquer the tribes far to the north- 
west, which were allied with the French, and secure for 
themselves the beaver skins of that region. In 1680 they 
began their attacks, and after that the French were in 



THE EARLIER FRENCH ANif INDIAN WARS 99 

constant trouble, defending their Indian allies and their 
trade. 

Disputes between the English and the French. — There was 
a continuous quarrel going on between the English and the 
French about the fur trade and about the ownership of the 
land west of the Appalachians and south of the Great Lakes, 
On the Atlantic coast also there had long been conflicting 
land claims. The New England fishermen, too, encroached 
on the French fisheries near Acadia. This furnished an- 
other subject for dispute. 

Summary, — i. Champlain founded Quebec in 1608, and other French 
settlements were made on the St. Lawrence. 

2. The French traded with the Indians, pushing their explorations 
into the country round the great lakes, and making friends of most 
of the tribes. 

3. Joliet and Marquette discovered the Mississippi (1673) and ex- 
plored it southward to the Arkansas. Father Hennepin explored the 
upper waters to the Falls of St. Anthony. 

4. La Salle (1669) went down the Ohio to the rapids, and in 1682 he 
went down the Illinois and the Mississippi to the mouth, where in the 
name of the French King, Louis XIV, he took possession of all the 
regions drained by the Mississippi and its tributaries, naming it Louis- 
iana. 

5. There was constant war between the Iroquois and the French, in- 
volving the tribes friendly to the French. The French also had a stand- 
ing quarrel with the English over fisheries and land claims. 

Collateral Reading — Parkman's "A Half Century of Conflict," II., 
63-67; Parkman's " Montcalm and Wolfe," I., 20-25. 



CHAPTER XV 

THE EARLIER FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS 

King William's War. — So long as England and France 
were at peace, the colonists of both countries were for- 
bidden by their sovereigns to engage in any but defensive 
warfare. The struggle betwen New York and Canada for 
the fur trade was, therefore, limited to efforts to gain ascend- 

7— Egg. Hist. 



lOO 



INTEicOLONIAL WARS 



eiicy over the Indians who controlled it. When James II. 
was driven from the throne of England, Loui^ XIV., king- 
of France, espoused his cause, and war between the two 
countries was soon declared. There was, therefore, no 
longer any reason for keeping the peace in America. 

Count Frontenac was sent to Canada for the second time 
as governor, to put down the enemies of France and recover 
the fur trade. On his arrival in Canada (1689) he found the 
French engaged in war with the Iroquois. His first task, 




Attack on Schenectady by Frenchmen and Indians 



therefore, was to overcome the Indians. He sent three 
war parties during the next year to attack English settle- 
ments. The first set out in February from Montreal travel- 
ing on snowshoes, to make its way to Albany and take the 
town. When the party reached the point on the Hudson 
where the path toward Schenectady left the main trail, they 
turned aside, not daring to attack Albany. They fell upon 
the village of Schenectady by night, and killed men, women, 
and children, about sixty in all. A few of the people 
escaped to Albany, but many prisoners were taken. 



THE EARLIER FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS 



lOI 



Attack at Salmon Falls and Fort Loyal. — About a month 
after the massacre at Schenectady, the second party sent out 
by Frontenac attacked the settlement of Salmon Falls, New 
Hampshire, and left it in ashes after killing or capturing 
most of its inhabitants. On its retreat this party fell in with 
the third body of men sent from Canada. The combined 
force attacked Fort Loyal, Maine, and after a siege of three 
days destroyed it. 

Expeditions against Montreal and Quebec. — Early in May, 
1690, a Congress held in New York planned attacks on 



Gul/^of 
T^ /^St. Lawrencef 

CAPj BFJtTON 




Earlier French and Indian wars 



Montreal and Quebec. An expedition set out from Albany 
for Montreal. It got into trouble and turned back, but a 
small detachment pushed on to some French border settle- 
ments and attacked them, with no great success. 

The expedition against Quebec was commanded by Sir 
William Phips, who a few months before had gone out to 
defend the commerce of Massachusetts, and had captured 
Port Royal and the whole province of Acadia. Phips 
set out in August with hi& fleet of trading and fishing ves- 
sels and succeeded in reaching Quebec, but not in taking it. 

In 1691 Peter Schuyler, mayor of Albany, led an expedi- 



I02 INTERCOLONIAL WARS 

tion against the French settlers, but fell into an ambush 
from which he escaped only by desperate fighting. 

Straggling Warfare and Butchery of the Settlers. — There 

followed several years of almost constant warfare from 
which the New England frontier buffered most. Some 
Indian allies of the French attacked the little village of 
York, Maine, during the winter of 1692. The village was 
burned, half the inhabitants were killed or captured, and 
the farms were laid waste for miles around. The brave 
little settlement of Wells, Maine, twice repulsed attacking 
parties. Durham, a small village in New Hampshire, was 
attacked in 1694 by Indians with Frenchmen at their head. 
Some of the inhabitants succeeded in defending their pal- 
isaded homes and saving their lives, but in the scattered 
farmhouses nearly all were killed. A few days later some 
of the same Indians fell upon the settlements near Groton, 
Massachusetts, and killed about fifty persons. 

In 1697 peace was made between England and France, 
and this put an end to King William's War, which had lasted 
for eight years. The English gave back Acadia to the 
French, and both nations w^ere left in possession of the same 
territory in America that they had held before the massacres 
began. 

Beginning of Queen Anne's War. — In 1702 William III. 
died, and Anne, the daughter of James II., became 
queen of England. War again broke out between Eng- 
land and France, and hostilities in America were renewed. 
Spain joined France against England, and South Carolina 
became involved in war with the Spaniards and Indians in 
Florida. 

Colonel Moore, of South Carolina, led an expedition 
against St. Augustine in the first year of the war. He took 
the town and laid siege to the fort. Two Spanish war 
vessels appeared in the harbor, and Colonel Moore burned 
the town and his own ships. He then retreated by land. 
The next year Moore, with a few Carolinians and a large 
body of Indian allies, invaded the country of the Indians 



THE EARLIER FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS 



103 



in Apalachee Bay and defeated the Indians, who were as- 
sisted by a Spanish force. 

This successful raid cut Florida in two, and gave Eng- 
land a large territory which now constitutes most of the 
State of Georgia. In 1706 a French fleet appeared be- 
fore Charles Town and landed troops. The Carolinians 
defended their territory with vigor, captured one ship and 
drove the enemy away. 

New York Settlements not Attacked. — Having at last se- 
cured peace with the Iroquois, Canada was able to carry on 
her far-reaching fur trade undisturbed ; but the Iroquois 
had long been faithful allies of the English, and during 
King William's War had put themselves under the protec- 
tion of England, by deeding all their lands to the crown. 
The French could not attack the outlying settlements of 
New York without breaking the peace with the Iroquois, 
who stood ready to come to the aid of their English allies. 
Canada, therefore, adopted the policy of keeping up an 
Indian war on the frontiers of New England, but of let- 
ting New York alone. The same regions of little settle- 
ments which had suffered so severely in King William's 
War were again de- 
vastated. The little 
town of Deerfield, in 
northwestern Massa- 
chusetts, suffered 
most. It was attacked 
in 1704, and many of 
its inhabitants were 
killed, or carried away 
as jjrisoners. 

Close of the War. — In 
1 710, with the aid of 
ships sent from Eng- 
land, Port Royal, in 

Acadia, was again taken from the French, and with it the 
whole of Acadia passed into the hands of the English. 




Old house at Deerfield 



I04 INTERCOLONIAL WARS 

The name of the town was chang^ed to AnnapoHs Royal, 
in honor of Queen Anne, and the province was called by 
its old English name, Nova Scotia, or New Scotland. The 
war came to an end in 171 3. 

War between Georgia and Florida. — England declared war 
against Spain in 1739, and General Oglethorpe, of Geor- 
gia, embraced this opportunity to send an expedition 
against Florida. After taking two towns in that colony 
he withdrew. A few months later he again invaded Florida, 
and besieged St. Augustine, but the fortifications there 
proved too strong for him. In 1742 the Spaniards re- 
turned Oglethorpe's visit, but the latter maneuvered with 
his little force in such a way as to lead the Spaniards into 
ambuscades, and finally to rout them. 

King George's War. — In 1744 France again declared war 
on Great Britain. The French tried to retake Annapolis 
Royal, but failed. Governor Shirley, of Massachusetts, 
determined to defend Nova Scotia by taking Louisburg, 
on Cape Breton Island. Louisburg was, next to Quebec, 
the strongest fortress of the French in Canada. It was at 
that time a resort of French privateers which preyed on 
ships and fishing vessels belonging to New England. 
Governor Shirley, with a large force of volunteers from 
New England, set out with a fleet of transports and armed 
vessels. After a siege of six weeks Louisburg surrendered, 
June 17, 1745- 

The news of this victory caused great rejoicing in New 
England, and a day of thanksgiving was appointed. It was 
a bitter disappointment to the New England colonies when 
Louisburg was given back to the French by the treaty of 
Aix-la-Chapelle, which closed the war in 1748. 

Summary. — i- In 1690 King William's War between France and 
England broke out. French and Indians from Canada ravaged the 
English colonies, and the English colonists made ineffectual attacks on 
Montreal and Quebec. This war lasted eight years. 

2. Queen Anne's War began in 1702 and lasted till 1713. Spain being 
France's ally, South Carolina was involved with the Spaniards in Florida. 
A French fleet attacked Charles Town (1706), but was driven away. 



THE GREAT PRENCH AND INDIAN WAR I05 

3. In 1710 a foray from New Englai^.d conquered Acadia. 

4. In 1739. during a war between England and Spain, Oglethorpe, 
of Georgia, twice invaded Florida, and in 1742 he defeated a Spanish 
expedition against Georgia. 

5. In 1744 France made war again, and the New England colonists 
captured Louisburg on Cape Breton Island. It was given back to the 
French in 1748, to the disappointment of the New Englanders. 

Collateral Reading.— Bancroft's " History of the United States," II., 
345-356, 370-387; Parkman's "A Half Century of Conflict," II., 109-154; 
Andrews's " History of the United States," I., I39-I45- 



CHAPTER XVI 

THE GREAT FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR 

Cause of the War. — In the treaties which closed the wars 
known in America as King William's War, Queen Anne's 
War, and King George's War, the interests of the Ameri- 
can colonies were not much regarded by either England or 
France. These wars had other names in Europe, and were 
undertaken for objects that seemed to both nations of far 
greater importance than the afifairs of the little colonies 
three thousand miles away. Boundary lines between Brit- 
ish and French territory in America were therefore left un- 
settled, and the quarrel over them went on till it broke into 
open war in America at a time when France and Great Brit- 
ain were at peace. 

Louisiana.^ — ^The most important land question in dispute 
between the French and the English related to the vast 
region which the French claimed by virtue of La Salle's 
discovery, and called Louisiana. The English claimed a 
large part of the northern portion of this region under the 
deed given by the Iroquois to King William. But the 
French had asserted their ownership of the whole valley 
of the Mississippi in the customary way, by making settle- 
ments near the mouth of the river in 1699. ^^ 1718 they 
had founded the city of New Orleans, 



THE GREAT FRENXII AND INDIAN WAR lO/ 

This western territory was not involved in the earher 
wars between the French and the EngHsh, but the French 
made ready to defend it whenever the English should at- 
tempt to mtrude upon it. They gradually built up a line of 
forts or fortified trading posts along the route of water 
travel from New Orleans to Montreal. Though the French 
claimed so much territory in America, they had very few 
])eople here to occupy it. At the end of King George's 
War (1748) there were more than ten times as many people 
in the English colonies as in all the French possessions in 
America, and English traders and settlers were already 
crossing the Appalachian Mountains. 

The First Ohio Company. — A company was formed in Vir- 
ginia (1748) to make settlements beyond the mountains. 
By order of the king, Virginia granted to this company 
five hundred thousand acres of land on the Ohio on the 
condition that one hundred families should be settled there 
within seven years. In 1750 Christopher Gist was sent out 
to explore and to select places for settlement. 

Burying the Lead Plates. — ^In 1749 the governor of Canada 
sent an expedition to forestall the English movement mto 
the Ohio valley. A party of soldiers and others went down 
the Allegheny and Ohio rivers, carrying five or six lead 
plates, which they buried near the mouths of different 
streams. On each plate was an inscription, stating that 
the French at that time claimed the Ohio River and its 
tributaries, and all lands on both sides of those rivers. 
Somewhere near the present site of Cincinnati the last of the 
plates was buried. 

French Forts. — The ridiculous device of trying to keep 
back the tide of English emigration by lead plates buried 
under ground at last gave place to something more practical. 
In 1753 Duquesne (du-kane), governor of Canada, sent 
an expedition to build forts in the Ohio valley. A fort 
was built where Erie now stands, on a point of land called 
Presque Isle (or " peninsula "), and another, called Fort Le 
Boeuf, where Waterford, Pennsylvania, is situated. At 



io8 



INTERCOLONIAL WARS 




Washington on his way 
to Fort Le Boeuf 



Venango, an old Indian village, the 
French seized the house of an English 
trader, and made it a French outpost. 
Governor Dinvviddie, of Virginia, sent a 
letter of remonstrance to the commander 
at Fort Le Boeuf, the principal French 
fort. His messenger was George Wash- 
ington,''' who was then only twenty-one 
years old. 

After many hardships and dangers, 
Washington's little party of seven men 
reached Fort Le Boeuf and delivered the 
letter of Dinwiddle. The return journey 
was even more dangerous. But on the 
1 6th of January Washington was back in 

Williamsburg with the reply of the French officer, which 

was virtually a refusal to heed the protest. 

The Attempt to Build a Fort where Pittsburg now Stands. — 

Governor Dinwiddle and his Council then decided that they 

must secure a position at the forks of the Ohio by building 

a fort there in advance of 

the coming of the French. 

A trader named William 

Trent was appointed ca]» 

tain, and directed to raise 

a company of one hundred 

frontiersmen. With these 

men Trent began the 

building of the proposed 

fort. Two months later 

a French force numbering 

about five hundred men descended on the work from Fort 

Le Boeuf. The little garrison of only forty men was 

obliged to give up the position. The French destroyed 

the works of the English, and built a stronger fort on the 

same spot. This they called Fort Duquesne in honor of 

the governor of Canada. 

* For biography, see Appendi.x, 




Fort Duquesne 



THE GREAT FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR lOQ 

Washington at Great Meadows. — Washing-ton was on his 
way with a force to join Trent when he heard the news of 
the loss of the position at the forks of the Ohio. He de- 
cided to advance to a point w^here the Ohio Company had 
a storehouse, about thirty-seven miles from Fort Duquesne. 
It was necessary to cut a road through the forest for the 
artillery, and two weeks were consumed in the march to a 
])lace called Great Meadows. Soon after his arrival Wash- 
ington learned that some French soldiers were lurking near 
his camp, and he set out with forty men to find them. The 
French, when Washington appeared, seized their arms. At 
this sign of hostile intent Washington gave the command 
to fire. A sharp fight ensued. Ten Frenchmen were killed 
and twenty-two were captured. 

With this encounter, which occurred May 28, 1754, the 
war began. There was now reason to expect an attack by 
a large force of French. Washington, therefore, sent for 
reenforcements, and began to erect a palisade, which he 
called Fort Necessity. The death of Colonel Fry, on his 
way to join Washington with fresh troops, left Washington 
in command of a little army of scarcely more than three hun- 
dred men. On July 4 Washington w^as attacked at Great 
Meadows by a French force of six or seven hundred French- 
men with many Indian allies. After fighting for nine hours 
he surrendered on good terms. 

Summary — i. The great French and Indian War grew out of a dis- 
pute between the French and English colonies as to the ownership of the 
Mississippi valley. English traders from Virginia and elsewhere were 
pushing their way into that region. In 1748 the first Ohio Company 
was formed in Virginia for the purpose of settling there. 

2. In 1753 Governor Duquesne. of Canada, sent a strong force to 
build forts in that region. Governor Dinwiddle, of Virginia, sent Wash- 
ington with a remonstrance to the French commandant in the Ohio 
country, but without efifect. Thereupon Governor Dinwiddle sent a 
company of frontiersmen to build a fort near where Pittsburg now 
stands. They were driven away by a French force, which built Fort 
Duquesne at the same spot. 

3. Washington with a small force took position at Great Meadows, 



no 



INTERCOLONIAL WARS 



thirty-seven miles from Fort Duquesne, and awaited reenforccments. 
The reenforccments did not come, and on July 4 the French in over- 
whelming numbers attacked Washington and compelled him to sur- 
render. 



CHAPTER XVII 

THE GREAT FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR Cojltiuucd 



The Albany Convention — Franklin's Plan of Union. — In 

June, 1754, a convention was held at Albany to make a 

treaty between all the colo- 



nies on the one hand, and 
the Iroquois on the other. 
The delegates consulted 
also with reference to a 
permanent union of all the 
colonies. The delegate 
from Pennsylvania was 
Benjamin Franklin,* a 
warm advocate of union. 
A plan proposed by him 
was adopted by the con- 
vention and laid before the 
different colonies. The 
plan was rejected. 

General Braddock Sent 
Over. — After the defeat at 




Benjamin Franklin 



Great Meadows (1754), the French were left in possession 
of the Ohio. But Governor Dinwiddie continued to plan a 
movement against them. The colonies being independent 
of one another could not be brought to prompt and united 
action. So Dinwiddie appealed to Great Britain for help. 
Major General Braddock was sent over with two regiments 
early in 1755. In April he called a council, composed of the 
governors of the several colonies, and it was decided that 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



THE GREAT FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR III 

attacks should be made at four different points at the same 
tune. 

Governor Shirley, of Massachusetts, was assigned to 
the duty of organizing the expeditions against Acadia, 
Crown Point, and Niagara. Braddock, with his thousand 
British regulars and about twelve hundred colonial militia, 
was to take Fort Duquesne. 

Washington accepted a position on Braddock's stafT as a 
volunteer aid without pay. By his advice Braddock ad- 
vanced with about half of his men in order to reach Fort 
Duquesne before French reenforcements should arrive 
there. 

About eight miles from the fort the army was suddenly 
met bv three hundred French and Indians, who scattered 
and fired from behind trees. Braddock's men, standing in 
regular ranks, were easy marks for the riflemen. They were 
soon struck with panic. They broke and ran, though their 
brave ofilicers tried hard to rally them. Washington, with 
his Virginians, untrained in regular military ways, but ac- 
customed to light Indians in the woods, protected the re- 
treating troops by adopting the Indian mode of fighting, 
each man standing behind a tree and firing when he saw 
something to shoot at. General Braddock was mortally 
wounded, and more than half his men were killed or 
wounded. Twice during the fight shots that were aimed 
at Washington killed the horse on which he rode, and four 
bullets passed through his coat, but he remained unhurt, and 
the Indians firmly believed that he had a charmed life. This 
contest occurred on July 9, i/SS- 

The Expulsion of the Acadians. — The peasants of Acadia, 
though now subject to British rule, remained French at 
heart, and most of them refused to take the oath of alle- 
giance to Great Britain after their land became British ter- 
ritory. Now that war was on they were considered an 
element of danger, as they were always ready to take the 
part of the French against the English. It was therefore 
decided to remove them from Acadia and scatter them 



112 



INTERCOLONIAL WARS 




through the different English 
colonies. This harsh measure 
was carried out in the autumn 
of 1755. About six thousand 
of these simple, ignorant peo- 
ple were forcibly put on board 
vessels and sent away from the 
homes they loved. Some of 
these unhappy exiles found 
their way back to Acadia after 
a time, and some went to Can- 
ada. Many of them found a 
home among the French colo- 
nists in Louisiana. 

Expeditions against Crown 
Point and Niagara. — Sir Wil- 
liam Johnson* was sent to take Crown Point, an important 
French fort on Lake Champlain, but he got no farther than 
the head, or southern end, of Lake George. Here he was 
attacked by the French under Baron Dieskau (dees'kow), 
and though he repulsed them, he did not follow up his 
victory. General Shirley led an expedition against Niagara 
which was also a failure. 



Driving Acadians to the ships 



Summary. — i. A convention was held at Albany in June. 1754. to 
make a treaty between the colonies and the Iroquois. Benjamin Frank- 
lin there proposed a plan for a union between the colonies. The plan 
was rejected by the colonies. 

2. By request of Governor Dinwiddle, of Virginia, General Braddock 
was sent over with a thousand men to help take Fort Duquesne. It was 
decided to attack the French at four points at the same time. 

3. Braddock, with his regulars and'a force of Virginia militia, was to 
take Fort Duquesne, and Governor Shirley, of Massachusetts, was to 
organize and send out three expeditions at the north. 

4. Washington went with Braddock as a volunteer aid. Within a 
few miles of Fort Duquesne Braddock was attacked in the woods by 
French and Indians fighting behind trees. The British, kept standing in 
regular ranks, were quickly driven into disorderly retreat, but Washing- 



* For biography, see Appendix. 



LATER EVENTS OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR II3 

ton with his Virginians, fighting in the Indian fashion, protected the 
British and prevented a complete rout. Braddock was mortally 
wounded, and half his men were wounded or slain. 

5. The peasants in Acadia refused to swear allegiance to the British, 
and were removed from their homes to the other colonies. 

6. Sir William Johnson was sent to take Crown Point on Lake 
Champlain. At the head of Lake George he was attacked by the French, 
whom he repulsed; but he did not follow up his victory, and his expe- 
dition came to nothing. General Shirley's expedition agamst Niagara 
also failed. 

CHAPTER XVIII 

LATER EVENTS OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR 



British Mistakes. — The statesmen who managed British af- 
fairs at that time did not understand conditions ni America, 
and they sent over unfit officers to conduct the war. Early 
in 1756 the Earl of Loudoun was appointed commander in 
chief of the army in America and governor of Virginia. 
The purpose of this was to unite the colonies imder a single 
military government. 

The Marquis de Montcalm, a great French soldier, had al- 
ready arrived in Canada to take Dieskau's place, and before 
the summer passed he captured the forts at 
Oswego. Montcalm had a smaller army 
than the English, but it was well trained, 
and he knew how to control it. 

Lord Loudoun planned an attack on 
Louisburg, and in June, 1757, he set sail, 
taking with him a large part of the troops 
who had protected the northern frontier. 
After going as far as Halifax, he turned 
back and sailed for New York. 

The Siege of Fort William Henry. — Lou- 
doun's withdrawal of troops from the New York frontier 
for the expedition to Louisburg gave Montcalm the oppor- 
tunity for which he had been waiting. He at once mus- 
tered his Indian allies and moved with them and his French 




Marquis de MontcaLm 



114 INTERCOLONIAL WARS 

army against Fort William Henry at the southern end of 
Lake George, 

General Monroe occupied the fort with a garrison of a 
little more than two thousand men. He made a brave de- 
fense, but on the morning of August 9 he was forced to 
surrender, Montcalm promised that the troops should 
march out with the honors of war, and should be escorted 
in safety to Fort Edward, fourteen miles away. The In- 
dian chiefs agreed to these conditions, and tried to restrain 
their followers. But the savages fell on the English as they 
set out on their march, and killed many of them. Mont- 
calm and his ofhcers risked their own lives trying to defend 
their prisoners. 

Pitt Takes Control. — Now came a change. During the 
summer of 1757 William Pitt, afterwards Earl of Chatham, 
became Secretary of State in England, 
with entire control of foreign affairs. He 
removed Lord Loudoun, and adopted new 
measures regarding the expenses of war. 
He required of the colonies nothing more 
than that they should provide clothing and 
pay for their own troops, and he ordered 
that their officers should rank equally with 
the officers of the British regulars. Under 
this arrangement the colonies willingly 
William Pitt voted Pitt all the men he asked for. 

Three Expeditions. — Three expeditions 
were planned ; one against Louisburg, one against Fort 
Duquesne, and one against Ticonderoga and Crown Point. 
After an active siege by sea and land, lasting nearly two 
months, Louisburg surrendered to General Amherst, July 

27, 1758. 

In September of the same year Fort Frontenac, which 
controlled Lake Ontario, was taken by Americans under 
Bradstreet and the entire French naval force on Lake On- 
tario was destroyed. Fort Duquesne was now cut ofif from 
supplies. 




LATER EVENTS OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR II 5 

Capture of Fort Duquesne.— The expedition against Fort 
Duqiiesne was in charge of General Forbes, a veteran officer 
and a man of great resolution. Unlike Braddock, he was 
ready to adopt methods suited to warfare with Indians. 
Washington and his Virginians, who knew the ground, 
formed the advance guard on the last day's march. Next 
came Forbes on his litter, for he was mortally ill. On 
November 25, 1758, they reached Fort Duquesne. But the 
French, being too few in number to defend the fort, had set 
fire to it and retreated on the day before. Forbes built a 
stockade and named the place Pittsburg. A year later 
Fort Pitt was built on this site. 

British Defeat at Ticonderoga. — The expedition against 
Ticonderoga and Crown Point was nominally under the 
command of General 
Abercromby, but Lord 
Howe was sent with him 
and was intended by Pitt to 
be the real leader. Howe 
was killed in a skirmish 
just before the attack on ^^.^^ ^^ ^^^ Ticonderoga 

Ticonderoga. Abercromby 

at once began to blunder. The front of the fort was so 
strong that it was hopeless to assail it except with artillery. 
Yet Abercromby ordered his men to carry it by a bayonet 
charge. After several bloody repulses they were seized 
with panic and withdrew. 

The End of the War Draws Near. — The close of the year 
1758 saw the French power in America almost o/erthrown. 
Louisiana was cut off from Canada by the fall of Forts Fron- 
tenac and Duquesne. The French fur trade was destroyed, 
and the Indians of the interior were no longer willing to act 
as allies of the French. The fall of Louisburg had opened 
the way to Quebec for a British fleet. 

In 1759 Pitt directed General Amherst, commander in 
chief of the forces in America, to advance into Canada by 
way of Lake Champlain with the main army. He was to 




ii6 



INTERCOLONIAL WARS 




James Wolfe 



take Fort Ticonderoga and Crown Point on his way, and he 
did so. 

The Taking of Quebec. — An expedition was sent in 1759 
against Quebec under the command of General James 
Wolfe,* a brave young ofificer. Pitt had se- 
lected him for the difficult and dangerous 
enterprise because of the energy and daring 
he had shown in the siege of Louisburg. The 
British fleet, with transports carrying Wolfe's 
army, arrived before Quebec late in June. 
Montcalm had concentrated his whole army 
there in expectation of an attack, and every 
point for miles above the city was entrenched 
and guarded. Wolfe found himself con- 
fronted by a high, almost perpendicular bluff, 
on which lay the city and fortress of Quebec. 
Wolfe was eager for battle, but all his efforts to draw Mont- 
calm out into the open failed, and all efforts to gain access 
to the fort were equally without success. Storms and cold 
would soon make the departure of the fleet necessary. 

One day Wolfe 
discovered a ra- 
vine winding up 
the face of the 
bluff. At the top 
was a cluster of 
only ten or twelve 
tents. This indi- 
cated that the 
guard at that point 
was small, and 
Wolfe determined 
to take the desper- 
ate chance of gaining access to the fort by climbing up this 
path. Twenty-four brave men volunteered to lead the way. 
As soon as musket shots were heard the whole force which 

* For biography, see Appendix. 




The Bluff at Quebec 



LATER EVENTS OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR II 7 

Wolfe had brought for the enterprise landed and clambered 
up the rocky face of the bluff, holding on by bushes. They 
reached the plateau above, called the Plains of Abraham, 
and were soon drawn up in line. Montcalm could no longer 
avoid battle. The English were in a position to cut off his 
supplies, and delay would give time for reenforcements to 
reach Wolfe. 

Before ten o'clock in the morning Montcalm led out his 
troops to meet the English. His ranks were soon broken 
by the steady fire of Wolfe's men. Wolfe himself, while 
leading a charge, received two bullet wounds. He kept on, 
however, till a ball struck him in the breast, inflicting a 
deadly wound. He was carried to the rear with life almost 
gone. Just then the French gave way, and the dying com- 
mander was told that they were running. " Now, God be 
praised, I will die in peace," said the brave young general 
with his last breath. Montcalm, too, was mortally wounded 
while trying to rally his fleeing men. When told that he 
must die, he said, '" I am happy that I shall not live to see 
the surrender of Quebec." Three days after the battle on 
the Plains of Abraham (September 14, 1759), Quebec sur- 
rendered. The French attempted to retake the city in the 
spring of the next year, but failed. On September 8, 1760, 
Montreal surrendered to General Amherst, and all Canada 
was included in the terms of capitulation. 

Canada Becomes British. — The war was finally ended by a 
treaty made at Paris in 1763. Under this treaty the French 
surrendered to Great Britain all their possessions in, America 
east of the Mississippi River, except a region round New 
Orleans. In order to get back. Havana, which the British 
had taken, Spain agreed to give Florida to Great Britain. 
France secretly gave Spain all French Louisiana west of 
the Mississippi Prver and the region around New Orleans. 

Pontiac's War. — The Western Indians still disliked the 
English and resented their taking possession of forts in the 
Mississippi valley. Pontiac, an Ottawa chief, united all the 
tribes between the Alleghanies and the Mississippi in a war 

8— Egg. Hist. 



Il8 INTERCOLONIAL WARS 

against the English. Early in 1763 he laid siege to De- 
troit. After five months of vain efl;ort he withdrew his 
forces. But the Indians captured nine small forts, and even 
attacked Fort Pitt. At Bushy Run, in Pennsylvania, twen- 
ty-five miles from Fort Pitt, General Bouquet defeated the 
Indians in a two days' battle. Most of the British regulars 
had by this time gone home, and most of the provincials, 
as the colonial soldiers were called, had been disbanded, so 
that there were few troops anywhere to meet the Indians in 
this struggle. Many settlers fled from the border, but 
many more fell under the tomahawk. Pontiac did not 
finally yield till 1766. 

Summary. — i. In 1756 Lord Loudoun was sent from England to take 
command in America. He blundered badly, accomplishing nothing, 
while Montcalm, the French General, captured Oswego. 

2. In the next year Loudoun made a fruitless expedition against 
Louisburg, taking with him the troops needed to defend New York 
Montcalm seized the opportunity and captured Fort William Henry on 
Lake George. 

3. In 1757 William Pitt came into power in England. He determined 
to drive the French completely out of America, and sent able generals 
to accomplish that purpose. These took Louisburg, Fort Duquesne, 
and Fort Frontenac, but an expedition against Crown Point and Ticon- 
deroga failed. 

4. In 1759 General Amherst took Crown Point and Ticonderoga and 
General Wolfe captured Quebec. A year later Montreal was taken, and 
all Canada was surrendered to the British. 

5. By the treaty which ended the war in 1763, France gave up all her 
territory east of the Mississippi, except the City of New Orleans and a 
small region near it. Spain gave Florida to the Britsh, and France 
ceded New Orleans and all the territory west of the Mississippi to Spain. 

6. In the same year the Indians in the West, led by Pontiac, went 
to war against the English colonies. Many settlers were slain, but after 
a year peace was made. 

Collateral Reading. — Seelye's " The Story of Washington," 45-50, 
61-70; Parkman's "Montcalm and Wolfe," I., 289-311,490-513- 



TRAITS OF COLONIAL LIFE 



CHAPTER XIX 



WARFARE BETWEEN INDIANS AND WHITE MEN 



Arms of the Colonists. — When America was settled, armor 
was still in nse in Europe, and some of the colonists went 
out to fight the nimble Indians, wearing metal 
head pieces, breast and back plates, or buff 
coats made of leather. Such defensive armor 
was found to be worse than useless in fighting 
Indians, and the colonists gradually laid it aside. 
At first the white men had an advantage over 
the Indians in having firearms. The savages 
must fight with bows and arrows and stone 
hatchets. But the Indians soon managed to 
get guns. There were always laws against sell- 
ing firearms to Indians, but such laws were 
ahvavs broken by unscrupulous traders. 

Matchlock Guns. — Some of the guns of the 
colonists were matchlocks. When a soldier 
wished to fire such a gun, he placed a forked 
rest in front of him, and laid the gun between its prongs. 
He then set off the powder in the lock with a lighted fuse 
or match. Friction matches had not been invented at that 
time, and each soldier had to carry a burning fuse or slow 
match. If his fuse went out he had to run to a fire and 
relight it. There came into use a newer kind of gun, called 
a flintlock, which required no fuse. In it the pulling of a 
trigger caused a flint to strike a piece of steel, producing 
sparks which set off the powder. This was a great im- 




Colonist in armor 



iig 



120 



TRAITS OP^ COLONIAL LIFE 




provement on the matchlock. Another chnnsy weapon* 
used by the colonists as late as King Philip's War was the 
pike or spear. 

Causes of War. — It had always been the custom of the 
Indians to hold a whole tribe responsible for the acts of any- 
one belonging to it. On the same principle the savage 
held that if a white man did him an injury he had a right 
to revenge himself on any white person he could find, man, 
woman, or child. The Indians were often cheated by white 
traders. There were also many misunderstandings and 
quarrels between them and the less prudent among the 
whitie men, and the colonists were always in dan- 
ger of attacks growing out of such disputes. 

In small settlements the white men often car- 
ried their arms to church with them. In exposed 
places blockhouses were built, where all the fam- 
ilies in the neighborhood might take refuge in 
case of alarm. 

In many settlements fierce dogs were kept for 
against Indians, and for tracking and catching 




Blockhouse 



defense 
them. 

After sufifering many disasters the colonists adopted In- 
dian methods of warfare, lying in ambush, marching in scat- 
tering lines, and firing from behind trees. In the northern 
colonies they learned to put their men on snowshoes in 
winter, as the Indians did. A scout would sometimes make 
himself a cap and body-covering of green leaves in order 
that he might watch the savages from the bushes without 
being seen by them. 



LIVING AND GETTING A LIVING 



121 



Indian Captivity. — The great terror of colonial life was 
Indian captivity. Hundreds of white people were carried 
into the wilderness by savage captors. Some of these es- 
caped and returned to their homes ; many more were slain. 
During the French and Indian War the French bought 
from the Indians their English captives, and sold them back 
again to their families when peace came. 

The Indians often adopted captives into their tribes and 
treated them well. Some white children who were thus 
adopted grew up to like the savage life. 

Summary. — i. The first colonists wor^ armor made of metal and 
leather. They were armed with matchlocks; later flintlocks were used. 

2. The Indians took their revenge for injuries on any white man they 
met. The colonists learned the Indian methods of warfare. 

.3. Captives seldom returned from the Indians. Some children were 
adopted and lived as Indians. 

Collateral Reading. — Parkman's " A Half Century of Conflict,"' II., 
48-51, 240-258; Scelye's "The Story of Washington," 72-75; Eggleston 
and Seelye's " Brant and Red Jacket," 118-125. 



CHAPTER XX 

LIVING AND GETTING A LIVING 



Farming in the Colonies. — At first the early colonists 
wasted their time hunting for gold and for a passage to 
India. A little later they learned 
that the real wealth of America 
lay in the productions of its soil. 
They therefore set themselves 
to farming. Their farming plans 
were sometimes as wild and ab- 
surd as had been their plans 
for getting to India or finding 
gold. Instead of wheat and corn, they tried to grow wine, 
silk, madder, coffee, tea, olives, and the plant called cacao, 




Colonial plow 



122 



TRAITS OF COLONIAL LIFE 




Colonial wagon 



from the nuts of which chocolate is made. Some of these 
things were tried even in the cold cHmate of New England, 

as well as in the colonies far- 
ther south. 

The colonists soon got corn 
from the Indians. It was un- 
known in Europe. It was 
raised everywhere in the colo- 
nies, but especially in Virginia 
and North Carolina, from 
which it was sold to New 
England trading ships and 
carried to the West Indies. 
New York, New Jersey, and 
Pennsylvania became the 
great wheat-growing regions of that time. These colo- 
nies sent W'heat and flour and hard-tack bread to the West 
Indies and to the countries bordering on the Mediter- 
ranean. Many thousands of great country wagons were 
employed in bringing grain to Philadelphia. Maryland 
and Virginia raised tobacco as their staple. North Caro- 
lina depended on tar, turpentine, rosin, and the like. 
South Carolina and Georgia raised chiefly rice and indigo. 

Many efforts were made 
in vain to find some staple 
crop suited to the New 
England climate and soil. 
But if New England did 
not lend itself to fruitful 
agriculture,, its waters were 
full of cod and mackerel, 
and fishing became the 
chief employment of its 
people. Young men 
trained to the sea in following the fishing trade became ex- 
pert sailors, while the carpenters of that region learned to 
build good ships. In these ships the New England sailors 




Old whaleships 



LIVING AND GETTING A LIVING 



123 




Old Dutch house 



carried on trade with pretty nearly all the ports in the 
world, and they presently became the most expert of all 
whalers. 

Cattle, Hogs, and Horses. — Hogs were very early brought 
to the colonies, where they found abundant food in the 
rich nut crops of the American woods. They multiplied 
rapidly, and many of them ran at large in the forest. Many 
cattle also were suffered 
to go wild in the woods, 
and it was a favorite 
sport to hunt them. The 
horses used in the colo- 
nies were of a small 
breed, but they were 
strong and hardy. Many 
of them escaped into the 
swamps and forests, and 
thus started a race of 
wild horses in America. 

Houses. — The houses of some of the first settlers were 
very rude. Sometimes they dug holes in the ground and 
used them as dwellings. In some places bark wigwams 
were built, like those of the Indians. When New York 

consisted of thirty 
houses, twenty- 
nine of them were 
of bark. As time 
went on, men built 
better houses, 
some of hewed 
logs, and some of 
planks split or 
sawed out by 
hand. The chim- 
neys were very 
large, with fire- 
places so spacious 




If/Iff H-T!!^ 



Old Virginia mansion 



124 



TRAITS OF COLONIAL LIFE 




Wooden tray 



that great logs could be rolled 

into them after being hauled 

into the houses by horses. In 

the early houses most of the 

windows had paper instead of 

glass, which was too expensive 

for common use. The paper 

thus used was oiled to let the light through better. When 

rich people began to come to this country, they built very 

good houses, some of which remain in use to-day. 

Furniture. — For the most part the 
furniture was rough, and there was 
not much of it. Benches, stools, and 
tables were homemade, except in the 
houses of the rich. Beds were filled 
W'ith moss or the down from the plant 
called cat-tail, or the feathers of wild 
pigeons. The poorer people brought 
their food to the table on trenchers, 
or trays, as their English forefathers 
had done for centuries before. They 
ate off wooden plates, and sometimes C'-"""^ — 
ofif square blocks of wood. Pewter 
dishes were used by those who could 
afiford them. At the close of the colonial period china ware 
had taken the place of the metal dishes. 
In the houses of the very rich colonial 
people there w^as some silverware and 
some stately furniture ; but carpets were 
rarely seen. The floors of the best rooms 
were strewn with sand. Wallpaper was 
not known until long after the begin- 
ning of the eighteenth century, but rich 
cloths and tapestries sometimes hung 
upon the walls of the finest houses. 
Cooking. — A common way of cooking 
Pewter chafing-dish meat was by throwing it on the live 




Kitchfen fireplace 




LIVING AND GETTING A LIVING 



125 




Skillets 



coals. The flavor of the ashes was thought to make it better. 

Meats were also roasted before the fire, on spits, or hung 

by strings from the ceiling. In the live 

coals of kitchen fireplaces was placed the 

skillet, a vessel two inches deep, and with 

legs three inches long. This and the 

griddle were used for baking corn bread. 
Another utensil made like the skillet, 

but deeper, and having no handle, was 

called an oven, and was used for baking 

wheaten bread. It was provided with 

loops or ears of iron at its sides, and was 

handled with hooks. The pots and 

kettles were hung over the fire upon a crane, or iron bar 

fastened to the chimney, and swinging in and out upon a 

kind of hinge. Sometimes 
a brick or stone oven was 
built in the side of the 
great chimney. 

The spit, spoken of 
above, was an iron rod 
that might be thrust 
through the roast. It was 
hung in different ways, 
sometimes on hooks in the 
andirons. A whole pig or 
fowl was often hung up be- 
fore the fire, and turned 
about while roasting. 

Tea, Coffee, Wine, etc. — 
Neither tea nor coffee was 
in general use in America 
until about 1725. Tea 
then became a very fash- 
ionable drink. 

In proportion to the 
A colonial tea-party • population more wine and 




126 TRAITS OF COLONIAL LIFE 

spirits were used in colonial days than in our times. Rum 
was much used, and the people in all the colonies drank a 
great deal of hard cider. There was much shameful drunk- 
enness. 

Dress. — Short breeches fastened at the knees were worn 
by men. Much lace and many silver buckles and buttons 
were worn on the clothing of the rich. Workingmen of all 
sorts wore breeches made of leather, buckskin, or coarse 
canvas. Trousers were also sometimes worn. In the 
country many men went barefoot in the summer. 

Travel and Mails. — The first settlers traveled about in ca- 
noes and little sailing boats. On land Indian trails were at 

first the only roads. They could 
be traveled only on foot, or on 
horseback. Goods were carried on 
pack horses. When roads were 
made, wagons came into use. At 
the close of the colonial period it 
took six days for the mail to go 
from New York to Boston, and 
two or three days from New York 
Pack horse to Philadelphia. 

Education — The schools were 
generally few and poor. There was little time for educa- 
tion. Boys, when taught at all, were taught to " read, 
write, and cast accounts." Needlework was thought to 
be a necessary part of a girl's education, but few girls in 
that time could write their names. There were few books 
and few newspapers until after 1700. 

At first there were none but " pay schools." In 1647 
Massachusetts made a law that there should be a school for 
teaching English in every town of fifty householders. After 
a time the other New England colonies made similar laws. 
At the close of the colonial period there were schools in 
all the leading towns, but no free schools such as we now 
have. 

The first college in the country was Harvard, established 




LIVING AND GETTING A LIVING 



127 



in 1636. The next was 
William and Mary, in 
Virginia, founded about 
the end of that century. 
Yale College, which 
dates from the begin- 
ning of the eighteenth 
century, is the next in 
age. 

Social Life . — In the 
Middle and Southern 
colonies, the people 
were fond of horse rac- 
ing, cockfighting, and 
other rude sports 
brought from England. 
In New England the 
people made a holiday 
of their militia muster, 

feasting, fighting sham battles, and playing rough games. 
In all the colonies dancing parties were common. Wed- 
dings were occasions of much feasting, and sometimes of 
hard drinking. In some cases the feasting continued for 
several days. Even funerals were marked by heavy drink- 
ing. In all the colonies there was much hunting and fish- 
ing. Coasting on the snow, skating and sleighing were 
first introduced by the Dutch settlers of New York. 




A needlework sampler 



Summary. — i. Corn soon became the leading farm crop in the colo- 
nies; but wheat was raised in the middle colonies. Fishing and trade by 
sailing vessels were followed in New England. 

2. The dwellings were rude with huge fireplaces and papered win- 
dows. The furniture was largely homemade. The dishes were of wood 
and pewter. 

3. Cooking was done by the open fire with spits, skillets, pots, and 
kettles. Tea and cofifee were unknown to the first settlers. 

4. Travel was at first mostly by water. The Indian trails became 
paths, and later wagon roads were built. 

5. Schools were few and poor. 



128 



TRAITS OF COLONIAL LIFE 



Collateral Reading. — Walker's "The Making of the Nation,' 66-72, 
McMaster's " History of the People of the United States," I., 16-26, 
70-74, 95-97, Roosevelt's " New York," ^2, 33, 92-96. 



CHAPTER XXI 

LAWS AND PUNISHMENTS; BOND SERVANTS AND SLAVES; 

PIRATES 




Ducking stool 



Sunday Laws. — In all the colonies there were rigid Sun- 
day laws, but they were not enforced so strictly ni some col- 
onies as in others. In New England the Sunday laws and 

a law requiring people to go 
to church were enforced to the 
letter. The Sabbath was sup- 
posed to begin on Saturday 
evening, and everybody must 
,, I observe it strictly. In Massa- 
chusetts nobody was allowed 
to walk in the streets on Sun- 
day except in going to and 
from church. 

Punishments.— In the colo- 
nies the laws dealt severely with women who were too free 
with their tongues. In Virginia an attempt was made to 
enforce an old English law against scolding and slander, 
which directed that any woman 
guilty of those offenses should be 
fastened to a ducking stool dnd 
dipped into a pond of water. In 
New England such women were 
gagged and made to sit at their own 
doors, " for all comers and goers to 
gaze at." Drunkards were required 
to wear a red letter " D " hung from 
their necks. A scold, gagged 




LAWS, PUNISHMENTS, BOND SERVANTS, SLAVES, PIRATES I29 





A form of stocks 



For some offenses men were placed in the stocks with 
head and hands and feet held fast, while boys and men 
pelted them with eggs. This punishment was 
usually inflicted on a day of public gathering, so 
that the culprit should be known to all the people, 
and perhaps be shamed into better behavior. 

For profane swearing, men were pun- 
ished by pinching their tongues with a "^ 
split stick, and sometimes by a fine also. ~~"^ 
For worse offenses 
men were whipped 
on the bare back, or 
branded in the hand 
with a hot iron, or had 
their ears cropped. 
For very great crimes the more cruel punishments of burn- 
ing alive or hanging in chains were sometimes, though very 
rarely, inflicted. 

Witchcraft. — The belief in witchcraft everywhere pre- 
vailed in the early colonial days. When the housewife 
could not make her butter " come " by churning, she would 
drop red-hot horseshoes into the churn " to burn the 
witches out." If the pigs were sick, it was a sure sign that 
a witch was about, and the ears and tails of the pigs must 
be cut off and burned. People were sometimes arrested 
and tried for witchcraft in nearly all of the colonies as they 
were in England. 

The Witchcraft at Salem. — In 1692 a fearful excitement 
broke out in Salem, Massachusetts. Some hysterical girls 
imagined that they were bewitched. They accused certain 
people of. witchcraft. In answer to their complaints one 
hundred and fifty persons were arrested. Twenty of them 
were condemned and put to death. 

The deluded girls finally brought their witchcraft charges 
against persons of high standing in the colony. This led 
to a halt in the prosecutions, and reason soon returned. 
The jurymen who had condemned " witches" publicly 



130 TRAITS OF COLONIAL LIFE 

begged pardon of their countrymen, and one of the judges 
who had passed sentences for witchcraft did penance by- 
keeping a fast once a year as long as he lived. In this coun- 
try there has never since been an execution for witchcraft, 
and soon after the Salem outbreak, the belief in witches died 
out in England. 

Persecution for Religion. — In the early colonial days it was 
everywhere thought to be right and necessary to regulate 
religious beliefs, and to persecute those who differed in re- 
ligion from the majority of the people in the country or 
colony in which they lived. Nearly every colony had some 
sort of law to regulate men's religious belief. In Virginia — 
in the early days, at least — only the Church of England form 
of worship was allowed. In Massachusetts and Connecticut 
the Puritan form of worship was the only one allowed by 
law. Those who advocated other doctrines and forms were 
whipped and banished. 

In Maryland, Lord Baltimore gave religious Hberty 
to all who believed in Christ. In Rhode Island, Roger Wil- 
liams succeeded in impressing his doctrine of " soul-liberty " 
upon the laws. He included Hebrews and unbelievers 
equally with Christians in his toleration. In Pennsylvania, 
where the Friends, or Quakers, were in control, there was 
full liberty of belief. Persecution ceased in all the colonies 
before the time of the Revolution. 

Bond Servants or Redemptioners. — Poor people were held 
very cheap in England in that day, and grave abuses re- 
sulted from the fact. Criminals, indentured servants, va- 
grant children, and others were sold, for terms of from four 
to ten years, as servants to the colonists in America. Im- 
prisonment for debt was common, and to escape it men in 
debt often sold themselves. Innocent men and boys were 
sometimes kidnaped and brought to America to be sold as 
bond servants. 

But not all the bond servants sold to the colonies were 
victims of such outrages. Many poor men were persuaded 
to go out of their own accord, or as " free willers," as the 



LAWS, PUNISHMENTS, BOND SERVANTS, SLAVES, PIRATES I3I 

phrase then went. Thousands of servants were sent out in 
this way every year. 

If a bond servant happened to fall into kindly hands, his 
life might be endurable enough. But if he fell into the 
hands of the hard hearted, there was nothing for him but 
to wait as patiently as he could for the time when he should 
be free and could claim what the law allowed him, namely 




The first negro slaves in Virginia 



a hoe, an ax, and a suit of clothes. Some bond servants, 
who were educated men, afterwards rose to wealth, but 
most of them remained in poverty after they got out of 
bondage. 

Negro Slaves. — The negroes which a Dutch ship sold 
at Jamestown in 1619 were the first black slaves in our 
country. It was not thought wrong at that time to en- 
slave negroes, as they were heathen. For seventy-five 



132 TRAITS OF COLONIAL LIFE 

years after that most of the work in Virginia was done by 
white bond servants, but when the price of tobacco became 
high, and the cultivation of rice and indigo were intro- 
duced in the southern colonies, negro slaves came into de- 
mand. There were never a great many of them in New 
England, and such as there were were kept mostly as house 
servants. 

There were many negroes in New York and Philadelphia, 
but not many in the country regions round about, where 
wheat was the principal crop. Wheat did not require much 
hard labor. Rice, tobacco, and indigo were the crops for 
which the negroes were needed. After the Revolution 
slavery was gradually given up in the North, where slave 
labor was not profitable. 

Pirates — A little before 1700 the seas became infested 
with pirates. Their number was often swelled by the des- 
peradoes among the convict servants whom they captured. 
The pirate James, having run short of men, lay off the 
Virginia coast and captured transport ships. Many of the 
men in such ships preferred to risk hanging in a career of 
piracy, which was called sailing " upon the grand account," 
rather than pine in colonial slavery. 

One of the earliest efforts to put down the pirates was 
made in 1696, when Captain Kidd was sent out in the " Ad- 
venture " from Plymouth, England, to find fame and for- 
tune in destroying them. Failing to find any pirates, Kidd 
turned pirate himself, and after a long career of crime was 
arrested in Boston and sent to London; where he was found 
guilty of the murder of one of his seamen and was hanged. 

Massachusetts and Virginia sternly set their faces against 
piracy ; the other colonies, with their habits of resisting cus- 
toms officers, fell into an easier way of regarding it. One 
of the Boston pirates, named Fly, was left hanging in chains 
in full view of all mariners "to be a spectacle,' and so a 
warning to others." 

In 1 7 18 the Governor of Virginia sent Lieutenant May- 
nard to capture the pirate Blackbeard, who was hiding 



LAWS, PUNISHMENTS, F.OND SERVANTS, SLAVES, PIRATES I 33 




Blackbeard boarding Maynard's ships 

ill Ocracoke Inlet, on the coast of North Carolina. A des- 
perate battle followed. Blackbeard stationed one of his 
men by his powder-room, with a lighted match in his hand, 
and ordered him to blow up the ship if Maynard should 
capture her. The pirates swarmed over the sides of May- 
nard's vessel and fought hand to hand with cutlass and 
pistol. At last, after a desperate fight, Blackbeard was slain, 
and with great difficulty Maynard's men prevented his pirate 
followers from blowing up the ship. Maynard hung Black- 
beard's head to the bowsprit and sailed back to James River 
in triumph. 

About the same time. Col. Rhett, of Charles Town, South 
Carolina, was sent out with two armed ships to chase the 
pirate Stede Bonnet, and found him in Cape Fear River. 
After a severe fight, Rhett captured Bonnet and his piratical 
crew and carried them to Charles Town, where they were 
soon hanged. 

9— Egg. Hist. 



134 TRAITS OF COLONIAL LIFE 

Encouraged by Col. Rhett's success, Governor Johnson, 
of South Carohna, also went hunting for pirates with a fleet 
of four vessels. At the mouth of Charles Town harbor he 
found two pirate ships, and a savage fight took place. The 
pirate captain, Moody, was killed and the crews surren- 
dered. The captured pirates were taken into Charles Town, 
where they met their fate. These and similar affairs made 
piracy less attractive than it had been, and a few years later 
robbery on the high seas well nigh ceased. 

Summary. — i. Most of the colonies had rigid Sunday laws. In New 
England these laws were strictly enforced. 

2. In colonial times, minor legal pimishments were more severe than 
they are to-day, and included ducking or gagging of scolds, locking in 
a pillory, whipping, branding in the hand with a hot iron, and cropping 
of the ears. 

3. Nearly everybody believed in witchcraft in early colonial times. 
People resorted to many silly devices to keep witches away. In 1692, at 
Salem, Massachusetts, twenty people accused of witchcraft were put to 
death. 

4. In Virginia in the early days only the Church of England form of 
worship was allowed. In Massachusetts and Connecticut only the Puritan 
religion was tolerated. In Maryland all forms of Christian belief were 
permitted. In Rhode Island and Pennsylvania there was entire religious 
liberty. Persecution had ceased in all the colonies before the Revolution. 

5. Many white people in England were sent out to America and sold 
as servants. For many years there were very few slaves in the colonies. 
But the need of laborers in the South to raise rice and indigo brought 
negro slaves into demand, and they were brought to this country in 
great numbers. After the Revolution slavery was gradually given up 
in the Northern States, where free labor was more profitable. 

6. About 1700 the seas on this side of the ocean were infested with 
pirates. In some of the colonies piracy was looked upon as not alto- 
gether criminal, but Virginia and Massachusetts made war upon it from 
the beginning, as other colonies did later. After a few years piracy be- 
came too dangerous, even for desperadoes, and it died out. 

Collateral Reading. — Stockton's "Buccaneers and Pirates of Our 
Coasts," 200-242, 309-319; Roosevelt's " New York," 76-78; Eggleston's 
" The Transit of Civilization," 294-307. 



COLONIAL INDUSTRIES 



135 



CHAPTER XXII 



COLONIAL INDUSTRIES 



Early Condition. — The object of England in planting the 
American colonies was to provide a market for her own 
manufactures. It was, therefore, thought wrong for col- 
onists to make or sell anything that the mother country 
made for export. At first the colonists in America were 
too busy in getting necessary food and shelter and in de- 
fending themselves against the Indians to do much else. 
They depended on England for most of the things that they 
needed. 

House Building,^ — Before the year 1768 there was not a 
single sawmill in all England. Logs were sawed into lumber 
or into boards by the la- 
bor of men. The log was 
placed on high trestles or 
over a saw pit. One man 
stood on the top of the 
log to pull the long saw 
up ; another stood below 
to pull it down. One of 
the first needs of the set- 
tlers in America was shel- 
ter. Woods covered the 
whole face of the land. The first houses were built of 
logs more or less shaped by the ax ; boards were then 
sawed in the English way for inside finish ; but 
before 1690 sawmills were erected on nearly every rapid 
stream, and the materials for building wooden houses 
were easily obtained and sawed lumber was ex- 
ported. 

Grinding Com and Wheat. — The white people often 
pounded corn into meal or hominy, after the manner of 
the Indians. But generally, in the earlier days, corn and 




Sawing boards 



136 



TRAITS OF COLONIAL LIFE 




Hand mill 

rels of hardtack and flour 
and to the countries on 
the Mediterranean Sea. 

Colonial Shipbuilding. 
— Shipl^uilding as a pur- 
suit did not begin until 
after 1640. The rise of 
the Puritans to power in 
England stopped emi- 
gration for a time. 
There were no new- 
comers to buy provi- 
sions, which fell to 
almost nothing in price. 
In these circumstances, 
Hugh Peters, who was 



wheat were ground in little 
handmills called querns. Wind- 
mills and horse mills became 
common. Cattle were also 
used to run such mills. Mills 
were sometimes built at the 
mouths of small streams, where 
the tide in ebbing and flow- 
ing turned their wheels. Peo- 
ple in the colonies walked 
long distances, carrying their 
grain on their backs to have 
it ground. After a while the 
ordinary water mill, turned 
by a waterfall, or by the force 
'" of a stream, took the place 
of other kinds. 

Near every large mill in the 
middle colonies there stood 
a bakery and a cooper's shop, 
and many thousands of bar- 
were shipped to the West Indies 




Windmill 



COLONIAL INDUSTRIES 



137 



pastor of the church at 
Salem, urged the people to 
adopt shipbuilding as a 
pursuit. Ships built in 
Salem and in Boston were 
sent voyaging to the West 
Indies, the Mediterranean, 
and England, and soon 
shipbuilding became a 
great trade, particularly in 
New England. Philadel- 
phia was also celebrated for 
her fine ships. When the 
Revolution broke out. 
New England is said to 
have had one ship afloat 



#>V\^<i, 






A 

Mr 








Old iron furnace, near Warwick, N. Y. 



Water mill 



for every one hundred 
inhabitants. 

Iron Works. — In Mas- 
sachusetts an inferior 
kind of iron for tools 
was made of bog ore in 
1643 or 1644, and after 
that time iron works 
sprang up in most of the 
colonies and particu- 
larly in New Jersey. 

The early iron works 
were what are known 
as bloomeries, where 
wrought iron is made 
from the ore. The first 
blast furnace in the colo- 
nies was established in 
Virginia in 1724. A blast 
furnace was more elabo- 
rate than a bloomery. 



138 



TRAITS OF COLONIAL LIFE 



Other colonies adopted 
it soon afterwards. 

In spite of the Eng- 
lish law the colonists 
made for themselves 
andirons, chimney backs, 
fenders, hearth plates, 
pots, kettles, skillets, 
mortars, rollers for gar- 
deners, *' boxes " for cart 
wheels, and other things 
of which they had daily 
need. 

The making of nails by 
hammering them out on 
an anvil, the only method 
then known, was a home 
industry, especially in 
New England. 




Spinning wool 




Spinning flax 



Material for Clothing. — 

When the immigration fell 
off, and the labor of the set- 
tlers brought them little or 
no money with which to buy 
English goods, it became 
necessary for them to make 
cloth for themselves. Their 
sheep supplied wool, they 
cultivated hemp and flax, and 
cotton was brought from the 
Barbadoes. Nearly every 
house had a spinning wheel, 
and many of them had looms. 
The boys and girls were 
taught to spin and weave. 



COLONIAL INDUSTRIES 



139 



The first cloth made was very coarse — mere tow cloth. 
Outer garments were made of linsey-woolsey. 

After a time England tried to stop cloth making in 
America. But sheep were raised for their wool. A single 
town in Connecticut kept a stock of two thousand of the 
animals, and paid all the town's expenses from the pro- 
ceeds. 

The Germans who settled in Pennsylvania, about 1690, 
introduced the spinning and weaving of very fine linen, and 
later the Scotch-Irish settlers in all the colonies had great 
skill in spinning fine linen thread on small wheels run by 
a foot treadle. 

Paper Making The first paper mill in the colonies was 

established near Germantown, toward the close of the 
seventeenth century. More than thirty 
years later the purchase of rags and 
the manufacture of paper began to 
spread throughout the colonies. 

Printing. — The first printing press 
in the country was set up at Cam- 
bridge, Massachusetts, in 1639. Before 
the close of the colonial period there 
were printing presses in all the colo- 
nies, and newspapers and books were 
published, mostly in Boston and Phila- 
delphia. 

Tanning. — Tanning was begun very 
early, but the leather was used chiefly 
for clothing. Shoes were brought from 
England. When cattle became cheap, 
more and more leather and shoes were made here. Before 
the Revolution no morocco was made in this country, and 
little calfskin was used. Most of the shoes were made of 
cowhide, and were worn by the laboring people. Fine 
shoes were still brought from England. 

Summary. — i- The colonists at first depended on England for most 
of the manufactures they needed. 




An early printing press 



I40 TRAITS OF COLONIAL LIFE 

2. The first houses were built of logs, and the boards used were 
sawed by hand as was then done in England. Later sawmills were built. 

3. In the earlier days grain was sometimes pounded into meal in 
mortars, but it was more generally ground in little hand mills. A little 
later windmills and mills turned by horses came into use. Still later 
water mills took the place of these. 

4. The colonists built boats and small ships almost from the first, but 
shipbuilding did not become general till 1640. 

5. Iron works were begun very early, and the colonists made such 
tools as they could out of the metal produced at home. The first blast 
furnace for making good iron was set up in Virginia in 1724. 

6. The materials for clothing were first brought from England, but 
later the colonists made cloth. The Germans and Scotch-Irish taught 
the colonists how to spin linen thread and make delicate linen fabrics. 

7. The first paper mill in America was established at Germantown 
between 1690 and 1700. The first printing press in America was set up 
at Cambridge, 1639. The first tannery was opened very early in colonial 
history. 

Collateral Reading. — McMaster's " History of the People of th? 
United States," I., 9, 10, 61-64. 



THE REVOLUTION 

CHAPTER XXIII 

CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION 

A Family Quarrel. — England and her American colonies 
had a standing quarrel ; but it was only a family quarrel. 
Usually the royal governors sent over were men who came 
to America to build up fortunes for themselves, and they 
found many ways of doing so — by bribery and extortion, 
cheating the king on the one hand and the people on the 
other. The Americans generally wished to keep out Afri- 
can slaves, but the people about the English court, and even 
the royal family itself, had an interest in the trade, and all 
the laws made by the colonists to prevent the bringing of 
negro slaves into America were annulled in England. An- 
other cause of dispute was the fact that England sent many 
of her criminals to this country as bond servants. 

The colonists often evaded the English laws against 
manufacturing and made things for themselves, but in the 
main they got used to the law and submitted to it. 

Trade Laws. — In order to understand one of the chief 
causes of discontent in America we must go back to the year 
1 65 1. In that year a law was passed in England which 
seriously interfered with the trade and prosperity of the 
colonists. This law was called the Navigation Act. It was 
intended to compel the colonists to sell their products only 
to England, and to buy there whatever they needed. An- 
other law, called the Sugar and Molasses Act, was made 
in 1733, which imposed a heavy duty, or tax, on sugar and 
molasses brought from any place except Great Britain or 

141 



142 



THE REVOLUTION 



the British Indies. It was intended to destroy the large 
and profitable colonial trade with the French West Indies, 
Laws Not Enforced — None of these laws were effective. 
For more than one hundred years the colonists found 
means of evading them. It came to be thought entirely 
respectable to carry on an unlawful trade. Even the most 
religious merchants thought it no harm to evade the laws 
made in England, and get their goods into this country 
without paying the heavy duties imposed upon them. 

Writs of Assistance. — Just at the close of the great French 
and Indian War George III. became king of England. His 
ministers made an effort to enforce the trade laws. The 
British commissioner of customs at Boston asked a court of 
Massachusetts for a writ of assistance. This writ was a 
search warrant, authorizing the officer to search the house 
of the person named in it for smuggled goods ; but the writ 
was usually issued with a space left blank for the name of 
the person against whom it was to be 
used. The officer could write in the name 
of any person he chose. 

James Otis,* an eloquent Boston law- 
yer and a patriot, was at that time the 
government advocate-general, and it was 
his official duty to argue in favor of these 
writs. Rather than do so he resigned 
his office and spoke eloquently for five 
hours against the writs, for the first time 
raising the cry that " taxation without 
representation is tyranny," which was 
echoed throughout the land. The court 
was obliged to issue the writs of assist- 
ance because the law required it to do so, but all attempts 
to search men's houses under their authority were resisted. 
This effort to enforce the trade and navigation acts was 
the first step of a new British policy in the management of 
the colonies. They were to be brought under the control 

* For biography, see Appendix. 




James Otis 



CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION 143 

of the British Parhament, or law-making body, though the 
colonists were not allowed to send any representative to 
Parliament to take a part in making the laws. They were 
willing enough to tax themselves for all public needs, but 
they were not willing to be taxed by anybody else, 

TheStampAct. — Not long after George III. became king it 
was decided to send an army of ten thousand British soldiers 
to America. The declared purpose of this was to defend the 
colonies ; but as there were no enemies of the colonists on 
this continent, except the Indians, the people here were not 
deceived. They understood quite clearly that the object of 
sending these troops was to enforce against the colonists 
the laws made in England to which they were so opposed. 

Moreover, it was decided in England that after the first 
year these soldiers should be paid and supported out of 
taxes levied upon the colonies by Parliament. In order to 
get the money for this it was proposed in England to require 
the colonists to write all their deeds, notes, and other docu- 
ments, and to print all their newspapers upon paper on 
which the government had printed stamps. These stamps 
were to be paid for by the people using the paper, just as in 
our time the people have sometimes been required to pay 
taxes to the government by buying stamps and attaching 
them to documents. But there was this difference : the 
stamp taxes levied in our day were levied by a Congress 
elected by the people of this country, while the laws levying 
such a tax upon the colonists were passed by the British 
Parliament, in which they had no voice at all. This is what 
James Otis meant when he raised the cry against " taxa- 
tion without representation." 

The Americans bitterly resented and opposed all such 
taxation, and when they heard that a stamp act was to be 
passed they grew greatly excited. They sent protests to 
London and humble petitions to the king, in which they set 
forth their rights as Englishmen. But their protests were 
not heeded. The Stamp Act was passed in March, 1765. 
It not only provided for collecting an unjust tax, but it 



144 



THE REVOLUTION 



provided also that persons violating the law should be tried 
in a court where there was no jury. This the Americans 
regarded as another violation of their rights as Englishmen. 
Resistance to the Stamp Act. — The Stamp Act was, in fact, 
not nearly so harmful to the colonists as the decision of the 
British government to enforce the laws that restricted trade. 
But the Stamp Act was good ground to fight on. The 
colonists could hardly make their fight for the right to 
smuggle goods, although they had been doing that for 
more than a hundred years. But their right to tax them- 
selves and not to be taxed by anybody else was a doctrine 
that they might stand on. As the time for the enforcement 
drew near, therefore, the cry went up throughout the colo- 
nies, " No taxation without representation." 

There was much mob violence. In New York the 
governor's coach was burned, and a mob tore down the 
theater as a place where the wealthy and those who took the 
English side in the dispute were accustomed to assemble. 
Boston was particularly violent. There the customs officers 
were obliged to take refuge on board the British ships. In 
South Carolina the people seized Fort Johnson, where the 
stamped paper was stored, and sent the whole of it back to 
England. Not a single stamp was sold in all America. 

Patrick Henry. — In 1763 
there was a trial in Virginia of 
what was called the " parsons' 
cause." The English Church 
was established by law in that 
colony, and the parsons of 
that church were paid for 
their services in tobacco taken 
as a tax from the people. But 
in 1758 tobacco was very high 
iP S i|KB M IB^BHH|l\ in price, and the Virginia 

legislature passed a law that 

the clergy should be paid in 

Patrick Henry money, at the rate of two 




CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION 



145 




Patrick Henry addressing the Virginia Assembly 



pence for each pound of tobacco due. On petition of the 
parsons the king annulled the act. The clergy claimed their 
full number of pounds of tobacco regardless of price. 

When this was refused, the clergy brought a suit in the 
courts, claiming damages, and a young lawyer named Pat- 
rick Henry * appeared in behalf of the people. In arguing 
this case he put aside all fine-spun legal quibbles, and 
plunged at once into an eloquent plea for the rights of the 
American people. Referring to the policy by which George 
III. was planning to oppress the colonists, he declared 
that the king had " degenerated into a tyrant, and for- 
feited all right to his subjects' obedience." Henry's elo- 
quence so moved the court and the jury that they gave 
the parsons only one penny as damages. Henry was the 
hero of the hour. Soon afterward the young orator was 
chosen to fill a vacancy in the Virginia House of Burgesses. 
He waited for a time in the hope that some more experi- 
enced member would take up the subject of the Stamp Act, 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



146 THE REVOLUTION 

but as none did so, Henry came forward with six bold and 
striking resolutions. These declared, among other things, 
that the people of Virginia had a right to govern them- 
selves, and that they could not lawfully be taxed except 
under laws made by their own legislature. In the course 
of his splendid speech on these resolutions Henry uttered 
the famous words, " Caesar had his Brutus, Charles I. his 
Cromwell, and George HI." — as the orator reached this 
point the presiding officer cried, " Treason," and others 
echoed the cry. Henry finished his sentence by saying, 
'* may profit by their example." Then he added, " If this 
be treason, make the most of it." 

The Stamp Act Congress. — During the excitement over the 
Stamp Act a congress to consider measures of resistance to 
it was called to meet in New York. October 7, 1765. It was 
composed of delegates from nine colonies, among whom 
were some of the most eminent men in America. The 
congress adopted a declaration of rights and grievances. 
It firmly asserted the rights of the colonists to make all 
laws taxing themselves. It declared that this privilege and 
trial by jury were rights belonging to every British sub- 
ject. At the same time it expressed affection for the king 
and declared the desire of the colonists to remain his sub- 
jects. 

Repeal of the Stamp Act. — As it was obvious that the Stamp 
Act could not be enforced, it was repealed in 1766. The 
colonists rejoiced greatly. They did not mind the declara- 
tion that accompanied the repeal, which was " that Parlia- 
ment has power to legislate for the colonists in all cases 
whatsoever." This assertion, of course, carried with it 
the claim of Parliament to levy taxes on this country at will, 
but the colonists laughed at a claim which the British had 
tried in vain to assert and enforce. 

The Townshend Acts. — During the next year some new 
laws were made in England which the colonists bitterly 
resented. These laws were called the Townshend Acts. 
They required the colonists to pay a duty, or tax, on 



CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION 



147 



all paper, painters' colors, lead, and tea which ships might 
bring into .America. A Board of Customs was established 
at Boston to collect these duties. After a while the British 
government stationed two regiments of soldiers at Boston 
to assist the customs officers in enforcing the law. The 
soldiers were quartered on the people, who were required 
to feed and house them. 

The Boston Massacre. — The people grew greatly excited 
over all this. They objected to the duties, as they had ob- 




The Boston Massacre 



jected to the Stamp Act, because these were taxes imposed 
upon the colonists without their consent. Still more they 
resented the sending of troops to Boston, and regarded it 
as a kind of threat. In the excitement over these things 
many outbreaks occurred, and finally, on March 5, 1770, 
the rioting became so violent that a few soldiers in self- 
defense fired upon the people, killing several of them and 
wounding others. 



148 



THE REVOLUTION 



This was called the " Boston Massacre." It roused the 
people of Boston to frenzy. A town meeting of three 
thousand people was held at once, and Samuel Adams was 
sent to the governor and council to demand the removal 
of the troops from the city. Having made his demand, 
Adams said to the governor, " There are three thousand 
people in yonder town meeting; the country is rising; the 
night is falling, and we must have our answer/' Fearing 
a further uprising of the people, the authorities sent the 
soldiers to one of the islands in the harbor. 

The Destruction of the "Gaspee." — An armed British ship 
called the " Gaspee " had been sent to Narragansett Bay 
to seize smuggling vessels. The " Gaspee " went aground 
(1772), and a mob led by a prominent merchant of Provi- 
dence set fire to her. The British government sent a 

commission of inquiry, with 
orders to arrest the men en- 
gaged in this affair, and to try 
them without a jury. But the 
Chief Justice, Stephen Hop- 
kins, ordered that not a man 
of them should be taken out 
of the colony. 

First Step toward the Union 
of the Colonies. — -In March, 
1773, the Virginia House of 
Burgesses appointed a com- 
mittee of correspondence to 
communicate with the other 
colonies, and secure unity of 
action between them with regard to British claims 
and wrongs. This was the first step toward a 
union of the colonies. Massachusetts, Rhode 
Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, and South 
Carolina all openly expressed their gratitude to Vir- 
ginia for taking this step, and responded to her sugges- 
tion by appointing committees on their own account. 




CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION I49 

The Tax on Tea. — In the meantime the Townshend Acts 
had been repealed, except that a small duty on tea was re- 
tained. This was done more for the sake of asserting the 
British right to tax the colonies than for the sake of the 
money that the tax was expected to yield. 

But the colonists were determined not to pay any tax 
levied by any authority except their own. They refused to 
allow tea ships to unload. In some cases the ships were 
compelled to return to England with their cargoes; but 
the governor of Massachusetts, who represented the king 
there, refused to allow tea ships that had arrived at Bos- 
ton to sail away again. He was determined that their tea 
should be landed. The people were equally determined 
that it should not be landed. A war whoop suddenly 
raised near the Old South Meeting House on December 
16, 1773, was the signal for a company of Boston men 
disguised as Indians to board the ships, and to empty the 
tea — ninety thousand dollars' worth — into the harbor. 
This exploit was called the " Boston Tea Party." From 
New York and Philadelphia all the ships that brought tea 
were turned back. Tea sent to Charles Town, South 
Carolina, was unloaded and put into storehouses, where it 
lay for several years. It was finally sold, and the money 
applied to the public service. 

The Four "Intolerable Acts." — When Parliament heard of 
the Boston Tea Party it grew angry, and passed several 
laws, usually reckoned at four, which were called the " Intol- 
erable Acts." 

One of these was the " Boston Port Bill." It forbade any 
coming or going of ships to or from Boston. This ruined 
many of the Boston merchants. 

Another of the " Intolerable Acts " provided that men 
accused of committing murder • in executing the laws in 
Massachusetts might be sent to England, or another colony 
than their own, for trial. This was intended to deprive 
Massachusetts of all restraint over English officers and 
soldiers stationed there, no matter what they did. 
10 — Egg. Hist. 



I50 



THE REVOLUTION 



The third of the " Intolerable Acts" was called the "Mas- 
sachusetts Bill." It changed the charter of the colony, set 
up a military governor, and in other ways robbed the Mas- 
sachusetts people of their liberties. 

The fourth act in the series was called the " Quebec Act." 
Quebec, or Canada, was governed by an absolute au- 
thority. The Quebec Act extended the borders of that 
province so that it should include all the territory south 
of the Great Lakes to the Ohio River. This took away 
from Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, and Vir- 
ginia vast territories claimed by them under early grants. 

The colonists everywhere sympathized with their country- 
men who suffered such wrongs. When the distressed con- 
dition of Boston was understood, help was sent from vari- 
ous colonies. Even from far-away South Carolina and 
Georgia there came the gifts of those who did not know 
how soon Boston's lot might be their own. 

The First Continental Congress. — These oppressive " acts " 
led to the calling of a Continental Congress, which met 




The First Continental Congress 



CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION 1 51 

at Philadelphia on September 5, 1774. All the colonies 
except Georgia sent delegates to the Congress, and 
Georgia was in full sympathy with the rest. From the 
beginning of the troubles, the people here and there in the 
various colonies had frequently agreed among themselves 
not to import British goods. Now all the colonies, by 
agreement in the Continental Congress, decided upon that 
course. 

Nothing could have been more effective than such 
action as this. The agreement needed no law for its en- 
forcement. Its effect was to deprive Great Britain of all the 
advantage that she hoped for in maintaining colonies. As 
Great Britain would not deal justly with America, America 
decided to depend on her own resources. She went to 
making her own cloths, and drinking tea rriade of sassa- 
fras flowers and roots. In the South the leaves of the 
yaupon and other shrubs were used instead of tea. 

Summary.— I. England and the colonies quarreled almost from the 
beginning. Great Britain forced African slaves upon the colonies, 
and made hurtful laws, especially the laws to prevent manufacturing 
in the colonies and to interfere with their trade. For many years 
the colonists managed to evade these laws by smuggling and in other 
ways. 

2. When George III. became king he made an efifort to enforce the 
trade laws strictly. The colonists resisted, holding that a legislature in 
England in which they had no voice had no right to tax them. 

3. Parliament passed the Stamp Act (1765). It required the colonists 
to pay a stamp tax on all documents and newspapers. But the colonists 
would not use the stamped paper, and not a single stamp was sold in 
all America. 

4. In 1765 a congress of delegates from nine of the colonies met to 
consider plans of action. It adopted a declaration of rights and griev- 
ances, declared that the colonists alone had a right to make laws and 
impose taxes, and claimed for every accused person the right of trial by 
jury — a right which at that time was often denied to Americans. 

5. The Stamp Act was repealed. But other equally bad laws were 
passed instead. On March 5, 1770, British soldiers in Boston fired upon 
tlie people, killing some of them. 

6. In March, 1773, the Virginia legislature appointed a committee 
of correspondence to communicate with the other colonies and arrange 



152 THE REVOLUTION 

for united action in self-defense. The other colonies liked Virginia's 
suggestion, and acted upon it. 

7. The laws taxing the colonies were repealed, but a small tax on tea 
was retained. The colonists refused to pay this tax. From some ports 
all tea ships were sent back to England with their cargoes. In Boston 
citizens threw the tea into the water. Tea sent to Charles Town, South 
Carolina, was put into storehouses, where it lay for several years. 

8. These things angered the British, and they made four new laws 
for the injury of the colonies. One of these stopped all trade with 
Boston by forbidding ships to enter or leave the harbor. All the 
colonies treated this wrong to Boston as a wrong to themselves. 

9. These things led to the calling of a Continental Congress, Sep- 
tember 5, 1774, at which it was agreed that no British goods should 
be used in this country. 

Collateral Reading.— Bancroft's " History of the United States," II., 
444-453; Roosevelt's " New York," 105, 106. 



CHAPTER XXIV 

THE REVOLUTION IN NEW ENGLAND 

The First Battle. — The struggle of the colonists for their 
rights had now lasted for ten years or more. From think- 
ing of England as their " old home," they had gradually 
come to think of it as the home of their enemies. The 
province of Massachusetts Bay had two governments. Gen- 
eral Gage had been appointed governor by the king; but his 
power, in fact, extended no further than the limits of Boston. 
The rest of the province was governed by a committee of 
safety, which had been appointed by the Massachusetts 
Provincial Congress. The committee was collecting arms 
wherever it could find them, and storing them. 

In April, 1775, two of the Massachusetts leaders, Samuel 
Adams * and John Hancock * were hiding from Gage in the 
neighborhood of Lexington. On the night of April i8th, 
British troops were sent to Lexington and Concord to ar- 
rest Adams and Hancock. Paul Revere, an engraver, gave 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



THE REVOLUTION IN NEW ENGLAND 



153 




Samuel Adams 



the alarm. He started at midnight, and galloped to Lex- 
ington and Concord to arouse the minutemen. 

The minutemen were men enlisted and ready to rally at 
a minute's notice. At daylight the British 
came upon a company of them, drawn up in 
line at Lexington, and killed eight of them. 
The minutemen gave way, but not until they 
had wounded two or three of the British. 
Failing to find Adams and Hancock, the 
British moved on to Concord to destroy the 
stores collected there. Here another fight 
occurred, adding to the killed on both sides. 

After two hours, the British commander 
set out for Boston, carrying his wounded in 
wagons. The minutemen followed him all 
the way to Boston, hovering about him like a swarm of 
angry hornets, and keeping up a galling fire from behind 
stone fences, and from every corner where a man could hide 
himself. In this running fight a large number of the 
British force were killed and wounded. That night the 
minutemen encamped at Cambridge, and others flocking to 
the scene of war joined them there. Messengers on horse- 
back were sent in every direction to spread news of the 
battle. This was the beginning of 
war. 

Capture of Fort Ticonderoga. — In 
the two forts on Lake Champlain 
there were many cannon and large 
quantities of powder — warlike stores 
much needed by the colonies. These 
forts were held by small British gar- 
risons who felt secure in their remote- 
ness. Benedict Arnold was commis- 
sioned by Massachusetts as colonel 
and authorized to enlist men for the capture of Fort Ticon- 
deroga. When within thirty miles of the fort, with barely 
a dozen men, he met with Ethan Allen in command of a 




John Hancock 



154 



THE REVOLUTION 




The Battle of Lexington 



larger body of " Green Mountain Boys " bonne! on the same 
errand. Allen retained the command. At daybreak on the 
morning of May lo less than a hundred men had crossed the 
lake ; but Allen entered the fort with Arnold at his side, 
seized the sentinel at the gate and forced him to show the 
commandant's room. Allen roused this officer from his bed. 
and demanded the surrender of the fort " in the name of 
Jehovah and the Continental Congress." The fort was sur- 
rendered without loss of life. Crown Point was surprised 
and captured the same day by another small force of 
" Green Mountain Boys " under Seth Warner. 

Bunker Hill. — Soon after the battle of Lexington, Gen- 
eral Howe, General Clinton, and General Burgoyne, with 
fresh British troops, reached Boston, and on June 17, 1775, 
the battle of Bunker Hill was fought, a little way north of 
Boston. A detachment of Americans threw up some 
breastworks there, to cut ofif Boston from the country 
beyond. The British, led by General Howe, attacked them 



THE REVOLUTION IN NEW ENGLAND 



155 



in front, with a force nearly double their own. The Ameri- 
cans waited until the British were almost upon them before 
they fired. The order was, " Wait till you see the whites 
of their eyes." 

When at last they fired, their volley sent the British 
column reeling back, broken and beaten. The British ral- 
lied, however, and came on again. Once more they were 
hurled back in death and disorder. A third time the Brit- 
ish charged ; and the Americans, running short of powder 
and having no bayonets to their fowling pieces, used the 
butts of their guns as clubs, and fought until compelled to 
retreat. 

The Americans keenly felt their defeat at first, but the 







'"•5 




courage they had dis- 
played against twice their 
number of trained Brit- 
ish regulars soon raised 
Bunker Hill in their 
minds to the dignity of 

a victory. General Joseph Warren was killed in this battle. 

He was one of the most devoted and able patriots in the 

land. 



Battle of Bunker Hill 



156 



THE REVOLUTION 




Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill 



Washington Made Commander in Chief. — In May, 1775, 
the second Continental Congress met at Philadelphia, in 

what is now called 
Independence Hall. 
Thirteen colonies 
sent delegates to 
this Congress. It 
accepted the Amer- 
ican forces around 
Boston as the Con- 
tinental army, and 
on motion of John 
Adams,* of Massa- 
chusetts, it ap- 
pointed the great 
Virginian, George Washington, to be '' commander in 
chief of all the armies raised, or to be raised. 

Washington had won a high place for himself in the minds 
of his countrymen by his courage and prudence in the 
French War. He declined all pay for his services, as 
he had done before, and as he always did afterwards, 
even when serving as President. He took command of 
the forces — part army, part mob — in Cambridge, July 
3, 1775. He was in great distress of mind because there 
was no powder to be had except the little that the 
men carried in their pouches and powder horns. But he 
made a brave show, and faced the enemy with courage, until 
the capture of a sloop gave him a supply of powder. Dur- 
ing the following winter, cannon were dragged over the 
snow from Ticonderoga, so that at last Washington's little 
army had something better than fowling pieces and flint- 
lock muskets to fight with. In March, 1776, Washington 
took up a position on Dorchester Heights, overlooking 
Boston. There he planted his cannon. This made it unsafe 
for the British to remain in Boston, where they were liable 
to be hemmed in and captured, so on March 17 they 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



THE REVOLUTION IN NEW ENGLAND 1 5/ 

moved out of the town, and soon afterwards went in their 
ships to HaHfax, Nova Scotia. 

An Attempt on the British in Canada. — In the summer of 
1775, General Montgomery and General Schuyler, of New 
York, were sent with a small body of soldiers to attack the 
British in Canada. It was believed that the Canadians 
would take sides with the other Americans, but they did not. 
The Americans captured Montreal in November, and 
Washington sent troops under Benedict Arnold and Daniel 
Morgan to help in the campaign. They were joined by 
Montgomery at Quebec, and the united forces made a 
desperate attack on that strongly fortified town. They 
came near taking it, but were finally repulsed. Mont- 
gomery lost his life in the battle, Arnold was wounded, 
and Morgan was captured and held for a time a prisoner. 
A few months later the Americans were driven out of 
Canada, and the British were free to invade New York. 

Declaration of Independence.— When the war broke out 
very few people in America thought of such a thing as the 
separation of the colonies from England. The colonists de- 
sired nothing more than to secure their rights as British 
subjects. The hope of obtaining them gradually faded 
away. The people grew an- 
grier, and independence was 
more and more talked of. 
The people of Mecklenburg 
County, North Carolina, 
were the first to assert such 
viewsin a publicway! Roused 
by the news of the Lexing- 
ton and Concord fight, they t , , „ „ nu-, j 1 u- 
=• ' -^ Independence Hall, Pniladelphia 

met in May, 1775, and 

adopted resolutions declaring in favor of American inde- 
pendence. 

By the spring of 1776, after a year of war with their 
king, the feelings of the patriots had changed. By advice 
of Congress the colonies adopted State governments for 




l58 THE REVOLUTION 

themselves, and Virginia instructed her delegates to propose 
to Congress the adoption of a Declaration of Independence. 
Obeying this instruction, Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, 
in June, 1776, offered a resolution " that these United 
Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independ- 
ent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to 
the British Crown, and that all political connection between 
them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, 
totally dissolved." 

Congress appointed a committee to draw up a formal 
Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson,* of Vir- 
ginia, drew up the document, and it was presented to 
Congress on July 2. After some slight changes, the decla- 
ration was adopted by Congress on July 4, 1776. It was 
signed on that day by John Hancock, president of Con- 
gress, and a little later by the delegates of all the colonies. 

Substance of the Declaration of Independence. — " We hold 
these truths to be self-evident," says the Declaration, " that 
all men are created equal ; that they are endowed by their 
Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these 
are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." The Declara- 
tion gives a long account of the various acts of tyranny by 
which the colonists had been driven to rebellion, and adds : 
" We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of 
America, in general Congress assembled, appealing to the 
Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our inten- 
tions, do; in the name and by the authority of the good 
people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that 
these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and 
independent States." 

The Reception of the Declaration.— The "Declaration was 
adopted in Philadelphia, where Congress was meeting. It 
was read there first, and the " liberty bell " rang out a joyful 
peal. When the news reached New York the people pulled 
down the leaden statue of George HI. and molded it into 
bullets. Americans everywhere rejoiced. 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE MIDDLE COLONIES 1 59 

Summary. — i. In Massachusetts a committee of safety was col- 
lecting arms and storing them for future use. General Gage sent 
British troops from Boston to Lexington and Concord to destroy these 
stores and arrest Samuel Adams and John Hancock. At daylight of 
April 19, 1775, these troops attacked a company of American minute- 
men at Lexington, and later at Concord, and then retreated toward 
Boston. This was the opening of the Revolution. 

2. Early in May the Colonists captured Ticonderoga and Crown 
Point. 

3. On June 17 the battle of Bunker Hill was fought. The Americans 
were defeated, but they proved that they could fight against regular 
troops. 

4. During the summer of 1775 Montgomery and Schuyler marched 
to attack the British in Canada. They captured Montreal, but were 
repulsed at Quebec, and soon afterwards were driven out of Canada. 

5. In May, 1775, the second Continental Congress met at Phila- 
delphia and appointed George Washington commander in chief of the 
American forces. In March, 1776, he forced the British army to evacu- 
ate Boston. 

6. After a year of fighting for their rights as British subjects it began 
to be clear to everybody that the Colonists should declare themselves 
independent. 

7. Read carefully the substance of the Declaration as given in this 
chapter. 

Collateral Reading, — Fiske's "The American Revolution," I., 120-126; 
Seelye's " The Story of Washington," 127-134. 



CHAPTER XXV 

THE REVOLUTION IN THE MIDDLE COLONIES AND AT SEA 

The Battle of Long Island. — In April, 1776, Washington 
withdrew his army from Boston to New York. There he 
expected an attack by the British, who desired to get 
control of the Hudson River, and in that way to cut off New 
England from the other colonies. 

Washington built two forts to defend the river — Fort 
Washington on the eastern bank, and Fort Lee on the west- 
ern, nearly opposite. He also fortified Brooklyn Heights. 
Late in June General Howe, landed on Staten Island, in 




8 IOmilcs 



Loug'itude 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE MIDDLE COLONIES 



l6l 



New York Bay, with the British forces that had formerly 

held Boston. A few days later his brother, Admiral Lord 

Howe, arrived with reenforcements. 

In August, General Howe crossed to Long Island with 

about twenty thousand men to capture 

Brooklyn Heights. General Putnam, with 

about forty-five hundred men, was sent to 

meet him. The Americans were soon 

driven back to their fortifications with 

great loss. This was called the battle of 

Long Island. It occurred on August 2.y, 

1776. Two days later Washington quietly 

withdrew his little army by night from 

Brooklyn Heights to New York city in 

a dense fog. It was during these opera- 
tions that the British captured the spy, 

Captain Nathan Hale, who had gone into 

their lines pretending to be a Tory school- 
master. They hanged him on September 

2.2. His last words were, " I regret that 

I have but one life to lose for my country." 
Washington Driven from New York. — 

Washington was soon forced to abandon 
New York and retreat up the Hudson to Peekskill. Howe 
pursued him, capturing Fort Washington and its garrison 
on his way. This was a severe blow. Washington was 
forced to divide his army. He left part of it under General 
Charles Lee at Peekskill to defend the Highlands of the 
Hudson. With the remainder he retreated step by step 
across New Jersey into Pennsylvania, pursued by the Brit- 
ish under Cornwallis. Again and again Washington sent 
orders to Lee to join him with his force, but Lee, who was 
jealous of Washington, did not obey. 

The Hessians- — Englishmen did not like to fight 
Americans, and the British government had to hire German 
soldiers in order to get enough men to carry on the war 
with the colonies. During the war about thirty thousand 




Statue of Nathan Hale 
in New York 



1 62 



THE REVOLUTION 



of these hired soldiers came over to fight the Aniericans. 
At first, most of those who came were from Hesse-Cassel. 
So the name Hessians was apphed to all the German troops 
hired by the English. 

The Battle of Trenton. — Twelve hundred of these Hes- 
sians had been pushed in pursuit of Washington in his 
retreat across New Jersey. At Trenton they lay on the 
eastern bank of the Delaware, waiting for the river to 
freeze over. Washington was watching them from the 




Washington crossing the Delaware 

Other side. He had seized or destroyed all the boats for a 
distance of seventy miles up and down the stream. Christ- 
mas was coming on, and Washington knew it would be a 
time of drunkenness among the Hessians. The weather 
was bitterly cold. 

Washington marched silently up the Delaware on Christ- 
mas Day, put his poor, tattered, and partly barefoot soldiers 
across the stream in the night, and then marched down 
on the other side of the river facing a driving sleet storm. 
He had made up his mind to take Trenton by assault. When 
one of his generals sent him word that all his guns were too 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE MIDDLE COLONIES 163 

wet to fire, Washington replied to the messenger, " Tell 
your general to use the bayonet, for the town must be 
taken." He waked the sleepy Hessians, and captured al- 
most every man of them. He then returned to his position 
west of the Delaware. 

The Battle of Princeton. — On the last day of the year 
Washington again crossed the Delaware and reoccupied 
Trenton. Cornwallis marched to attack the Americans. 
He promptly pushed back Washington's lines, and then 
waited for the morning to bag his game. But Washington, 
leaving some men to renew his camp fires during the night 
in order to deceive the British, marched silently round 
Cornwallis's fiank and gained his rear. The first that Corn- 
wallis knew of the escape of the Americans was in the 
morning when he heard Washington's cannon thundering 
at Princeton, far behind him, where he had left three 
regiments to hold the place. Having won a victory at 
Princeton, Washington withdrew to Morristown, a strong 
position among the hills, and there went into winter 
quarters. 

This entire movement from the first crossing of the Dela- 
ware to the end of the campaign was 6ne of the most brilliant 
of the Revolution. The British were forced to draw in their 
scattered detachments and mass them where they could be 
supported from New York, thus leaving Washington in 
control of nearly all New Jersey. 

Burgoyne's March. — The British plans for 1777 included a 
grand stroke. This was nothing less than to cut the coun- 
try in two. In order to do this General Burgoyne, in 
July, was sent south from Canada to seize Lake Cham- 
plain and -the Hudson River, and thus cut off New Eng- 
land from the other colonies. General Schuyler, who was 
in command of the American troops in the north, did 
everything in his power to interfere with Burgoyne's pro- 
gress. He felled trees into the creek which Burgoyne's 
boats must navigate, and across the road they must march 
upon. He involved Burgoyne in long and tedious delays 



164 



THE REVOLUTION 



in crossing from Lake Champlain to the Hudson. This 
delay was of the utmost value to the Americans. 

Schuyler was superseded because of his prejudice against 
the New Englanders, and General Horatio Gates was put 
in his place. 

The Defeat of St. Leger. — While Burgoyne was marching 
south, another British commander, Lieutenant Colonel St. 
Leger, with a smaller force, including some Indians, was 
approaching the Hudson by way of the Mohawk Valley. 
He laid siege to Fort Schuyler, as it was later called, on 
July 3, 1777. It was his purpose to meet Burgoyne at 
Albany, to which point Burgoyne confidently expected to 
force his way. On the 6th of August, at Oriskany, a severe 
all-day battle was fought between part of St. Leger's forces 

and General Herkimer. The 
British and Indians were de- 
feated, and on August 22 St. 
Leger's entire army became 
panic-stricken and abandoned 
the siege of the fort. 

Battle of Bennington . — • B u r - 
goyne's supplies growing short 
in his long march, he sent one 
of his German generals to the 
neighborhood of Bennington, 
Vermont, to collect food and 
horses. Vermont was not yet 
a State in the Union, but was 
claimed by both New York and 
New Hampshire, while for its 
own part it claimed itself. The 
German general was assured 
that the parties of men in their 
shirt-sleeves whom he met were 
loyalists — that is to say, men in sympathy with the British 
cause — and would help him in what he had to do. But 
these men were, in fact, New Hampshire men under Gen- 




Bennington Monument 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE MIDDLE COLONIES 



165 



eral John Stark, and a body of " Green Mountain Boys," 
who had rallied in defense of the country. They were 
allowed to encamp near the German general's force. After 
a time they attacked the Germans, August 16, 1777, and 
killed or captured nearly a thousand men. This is called 
the battle of Bennington. 

The Defeat of Burgoyne. — This battle was the beginning 
of disasters for Burgoyne. The whole country was up in 
arms. The militia men, often barefoot, and sometimes in 




Burgoyne's surrender 

their shirt-sleeves, carrying fowling pieces, flocked to the 
American standard. These men were used to hunting, and 
knew how to shoot. They also knew the country round 
about in its every nook and corner. Burgoyne, on the other 
hand, did not know the woods, and had no scouts who 
knew them. Wherever he met the Americans a desperate 
battle followed. He found it impossible to force his way 
to Albany, and the road back was also closed to him. The 
Americans were, in fact, all around him, and the final 
struggle was desperate. 



1 66 



THE REVOLUTION 



The finest fighting was done by Benedict Arnold. To 
him and to the great Virginia leader, General Daniel Mor- 
gan, the victories at Bemis Heights, on September 19 and 
on October 7, are generally accredited. Hopelessly beset, 
and unable either to advance or to retreat, Burgoyne at 
last, on the 17th, surrendered his fine army at a point near 
Saratoga. Thus ended in disaster the grandest campaign 
that the British had planned up to that time. 

The British Occupy Philadelphia. — In the campaign of 1777 
the British around New York should have devoted them- 




Camp at Valley Forge 

selves to the work of pushing northward and uniting with 
Burgoyne ; but Howe, who commanded them, thought it 
would be a feather in his cap to take Philadelphia, the cap- 
ital of the country. So, after making a feint on the mouth 
of the Delaware, Howe put to sea in July, much to the per- 
plexity of Washington. The American commander soon 
heard that the British were sailing up Chesapeake Bay. He 
advanced, therefore, to Chad's Ford, on the Brandywine, 
and gave battle when the British arrived there on Septem- 
ber II. He was forced to retreat toward Philadelphia. 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE MIDDLE COLONIES 



167 



Again he went out to fight a battle, but a violent storm 
ruined the ammunition of both armies, and Washington 
retreated. 

On the 19th of September the members of Congress were 
aroused from their beds and hastened away from Phila- 
delphia to Lancaster. Later they went to York, Penn- 
sylvania. In the meantime Howe entered Philadelphia on 
September 26. Washington's undismayed little army at- 
tacked him at Germantown on the 4th of October. It was 
again defeated. Washington then sought winter quarters 
at Valley Forge, twenty-four miles northwest of Phila- 
delphia. 

The Treaty of Alliance with France. — After Burgoyne's 
surrender. England tried to make peace with the Ameri- 
cans, offering any terms short of independence. But inde- 
pendence was what the Americans wanted and meant to 
get. Benjamin Franklin had been in France for a year try- 
ing to secure aid, but the French government would not 
commit itself. The victory of the Americans over Bur- 
goyne, however, turned the scale, and a few months later, 
on February 6, 1778, France 
recognized the independence 
of the UnitedStates, and a 
treaty of alliance was made be- 
tween the two powers. A' 
French fleet was sent over to 
help the Americans. 

Distinguished Foreigners in the 
Revolutionary Army. — The 
young Marquis de Lafayette * 
came to America in 1777 to 
serve as a volunteer in Wash- 
ington's army. He brought 
with him Baron de Kalb, a 
veteran of the German army, and the two joined Washing- 
ton near Philadelphia. Two Polish patriots, Count Pulaski 

♦ For biography, see Appendix. 
II — Egg. Hist. 




^-^ ***!»,.■• 



Lafayette 



l68 THE REVOLUTION 

and Count Kosciusko, came in the same year. Baron 
Steuben, an able and experienced Prussian officer, joined 
the American army in 1778, and rendered great service in 
drilhng the troops m European mihtary tactics. De Kalb 
and Pulaski lost their lives in the war. 

The Darkest Hour of the Revolution. — During the winter 
spent at Valley Forge, a little place on the Schuylkill River, 
Washington's army suffered the greatest distress and dis- 
couragement. The men depended upon the gifts of the 
charitable for clothing with which to keep themselves from 
freezing. The country people round about took their provi- 
sions into Philadelphia, where they could sell them to the 
English for gold. The Americans were ragged, barefoot, 
cold, and hungry. 

The Conway Cabal. — At this time of discouragement a 
conspiracy was formed to remove Washington from com- 
mand and put Gates in his place. This was called the Con- 
way Cabal, from the name of one of the men engaged in it. 
Some members of Congress thought that Washington had 
partially failed as a commander, and the Cabal hoped to 
make an end of his career. 

Evacuation of Philadelphia and the Battle of Monmouth. — 
The British government recalled Lord Howe because of his 
inactivity ,and put Sir Henry Clinton into his place . It was 
decided to evacuate Philadelphia, which could not be held 
against the French fleet. Washington learned of this, and 
sent Lafayette across the Schuylkill to intercept the first 
men who should move. A trap was set for Lafayette, but he 
managed to avoid it, and got back across the Schuylkill. 
The British left Philadelphia on the morning of the i8th 
of June, 1778. 

Washington now put the vigilant " little boy," as Lafay- 
ette was sometimes called, in charge of the movements to 
pursue Sir Henry Clinton. General Charles Lee, as senior 
officer, claimed and took command of this force. The New 
Jersey militia were destroying bridges and filling up wells 
in front of the British to make their retreat more difficult 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE MIDDLE COLONIES 169 

in the terrible heat of the weather. Washington hurried on 
and overtook the British rear at Monmouth, New Jersey. 
He ordered an attack, but Lee so managed that the Amer- 
icans were thrown into disorder, and a retreat was begun. 
Washington met Lee with sharp and stormy words of re- 
buke, and Lee was soon afterwards dismissed from the 
army. He was a traitor, but the fact was not then known. 

After rebuking Lee and sending him to the rear, Wash- 
ington at once took command, rallied his forces, and re- 
newed the attack. The battle lasted till night, the Amer- 
icans having the best of it. The Americans slept on their 
arms that night, and about midnight Clinton withdrew. 
Before morning he was on ground too strong to be attacked. 
This battle occurred on June 28, 1778. It is known as the 
Battle of Monmouth. 

Stony Point. — There were but few men engaged in the 
celebrated charge on Stony Point, on the Hudson River, not 
far above New York. Nor did it accomplish any great re- 
sults. But for pluck and heroic dash it will live in song and 
story as long as brave deeds are remembered. General 
Wayne * — called " Mad Anthony " because of his reckless 
daring — led a force of Americans to within a mile and a 
half of the post on the evening of July 15, 1779. He killed 
all the dogs along his line of march to prevent them from 
giving the alarm by barking. A little after midnight, on 
the morning of the i6th, he assaulted the fort with tremen- 
dous vigor. With empty guns and fixed bayonets the 
Americans rushed over the works and compelled the Brit- 
ish to surrender. Washington himself planned this sur- 
prise. 

John Paul Jones. — John Paul Jones,* the greatest of Revo- 
lutionary naval officers, was born in Scotland. He came to 
America very young, and won distinction for daring at the 
beginning of the Revolution. He crossed the sea in the 
ship " Ranger," and got command of an ancient Indiaman, 
which he called the "Bon Homme Richard" — the French 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



I70 



THE REVOLUTION 



translation of " poor 
Richard." "Poor 
Richard's Ahnanac " 
was FrankHn's most 
poptdar book, and 
Franklin was Paul 
Jones's steadfast 
friend. 

On September 
23, 1779, the " Bon 
Homme Richard" 
engaged a British 
war ship called the 
" Serapis " off the 
northeast coast of 
England, and a fierce 
fight ensued. Jones 
sailed up to his adver- 
sary and fastened the 
two ships together. 
"Have you struck?" 
demanded the British 
captain when the fire 
slackened. " I haven't 
begun to fight yet," 
answered Jones. Both ships were shot nearly to pieces 
when Jones's men from the rigging dropped hand grenades 
— a kind of bombshell — through a hatchway of the "Sera- 
pis" into some powder, a powder chest exploded, killing 
many men, and the " Serapis " was obliged to surrender. 
Jones removed his crew from his own ship to the " Serapis," 
and the " Bon Homme Richard " went to the bottom the 
next day. Jones sailed in triumph in his enemy's ship into 
a Dutch port. 

Benedict Arnold and His Treason. — Benedict Arnold was, 
as we have seen, one of the bravest officers on the American 
side. He was also, probably, one of the most dishonest. 




Capture of the " Serapis " 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE MIDDLE COLONIES 



171 



His accounts were repeatedly looked into, with results that 
reflected no credit upon him. Once he was tried by court- 
martial and sentenced to be reprimanded. Smarting under 
this shame, he began to plan revenge. 

West Point, in the Highlands of the Hudson, was the 
most important fortified place in the United States. It con- 
trolled the Hudson River. Arnold got himself appointed 
commander of this fort in order to betray it into the hands 
of the British, who were to reward him with a large sum of 
money and the position of a brigadier general in the Brit- 
ish army. In Septem- 
ber, 1780, Major John 
Andre (ahn-dra), aide- 
de-camp to Sir Henry 
Clinton, was sent from 
New York to arrange 
with Arnold for the 
surrender of the fort. 
On his way back to 
New York /Vndre was 
captured near Tarry.- 
town by three armed 
Americans. They 
searched him, and 
found in his boots 
maps and plans of 
West Point, and a pass from Arnold through the American 
hues. 

Hearing of Andre's capture, and knowing wdiat it meant 
for him, Arnold made his escape to a British ship that lay 
in the river. 

The brave young Andre was tried as a spy, condenmed, 
and hanged. 




Trial of Andre 



Summary. ^i. In April, 1776, Washington withdrew from Boston to 
New York and fortified the Hudson River He was soon forced to 
abandon New York and retreat up the Hudson and across New Jersey 



1/2 THE REVOLUTION 

into Pennsylvania, with the British army pursuing him as far as the 
Delaware River, where they encamped in December. 

2. At Christmas Washington recrossed the Delaware during the 
night, and in the morning fell upon the Hessians at Trenton, and cap- 
tured almost every man of them. 

3. On the last day of the year Washington again crossed to Trenton, 
and, having crept around the British army in the night, attacked and 
defeated the British at Princeton on New Year's Day, 1777. He then 
withdrew to Morristown, in the hills. This forced the British to with- 
draw nearly to New York, and left Washington in control of New 
Jersey. 

4. In July, 1777, a large British army under General Burgoyne was 
sent from Canada by way of Lake Champlain, while another force under 
St. Leger was sent down the Mohawk Valley. It was expected that 
these and a third force, ascending the Hudson from New York, would 
meet near Albany, and thus cut ofif New England from the rest of the 
colonies. St. Leger was defeated at Oriskany and forced to retreat. 

5. In the meanwhile Burgoyne sent a force to collect supplies 
in Vermont. This force was defeated near Bennington, August 16. 

6. Americans flocked rapidly to the army that was opposing Bur- 
goyne, and presently the British commander found himself completely 
surrounded. After days of ceaseless fighting he surrendered his whole 
army near Saratoga in October. 

7. Instead of marching to meet Burgoyne, Howe, in command at 
New York, set out to occupy Philadelphia. Washington fought him 
unsuccessfully at Brandywine Creek, and Howe occupied Philadelphia 
in September. Washington attacked him at Germantown, but was again 
defeated. The American army then went into winter quarters at Valley 
Forge. 

8. The winter at Valley Forge (1777-1778) was the darkest time of 
the Revolution. It was at that time that a conspiracy was formed to set 
Washington aside. 

9. Early in 1778 France recognized the independence of the United 
States, and a French fleet was sent over to help the Americans. 

10. Fear of the French fleet caused the British to leave Philadelphia 
on the i8th of June, 1778. They retreated across New Jersey, Wash- 
ington pursuing them. After a battle at Monmouth, in which Washing- 
ton was the victor, the British retreated to a strong position and left 
Washington master of New Jersey. 

11. In July, 1779, Gen. Anthony Wayne stormed and carried Stony 
Point on the Hudson. 

12. John Paul Jones was the most brilliant naval officer of the Revo- 
lution. In September, 1779, in the ship the " Bon Homme Riciiard " he 
attacked and captured the British ship " Serapis." 



EVENTS WEST OF THE APPALACHIANS 



173 



13. In September, 1780, Benedict Arnold tried to betray West Point 
to the British, and, his plot being discovered, he deserted to the enemy. 

Collateral Reading. — (Battle of Long Island) Roosevelt's " Nev\? 
York," 128-136; (Retreat through New Jersey) Seelye's "The Story of 
Washington," 171-181 ; (Trenton and Princeton) 183-194; (Brandywine) 
205-208; (Germantown) 211-215; (Defeat of Burgoyne). 



CHAPTER XXVI . 

EVENTS WEST OF THE APPALACHIANS 

The Men at the West. — In order to understand what hap- 
pened west of the mountains during the Revokition, we 
must go back a Httle and briefly tell of the settlement of that 
country. 

Watauga. — About 1769 hardy emigrants began crossing 
the mountains, some of them to hunt and explore, and some 
to make homes for themselves in the richly fertile country 
which now constitutes Kentucky and Tennessee. 

Among these were James Robertson and John Sevier, 
who are celebrated in history as great pioneer leaders and 
founders of States. 

These two, with many others, settled about 1770, on the 
Watauga, in what is now Ten- 
nessee. 

Their settlement was then 
a part of North Carolina, and 
not liking the rule of the royal 
governor of that colony, they 
set up a government for them- 
selves, and for six years Wa- 
tauga acted as an independent 
state. 

The Hunters and Surveyors. 
— Other enterprising men, 
among whom Daniel Boone,* 
Isaac Shelby, and Simon Ken- 

♦ For biography, see Appendix. Daniel Boone 




174 



THE REVOLUTION 



ton were notable, went into the wilderness on hunting and 
surveying expeditions that sometimes lasted for years. 

These wanderers of the forest increased in numbers until 
the Indians became alarmed at their trespassing upon the 
hunting grounds and made war. The savages were badly 
beaten in a battle at Point Pleasant by an army of Vir- 
ginians (1774), and during the peace that followed large 




Battle of Point Pleasant 

numbers of Virginians and Carolinians removed to the 
Western wilderness. 

Transylvania. — The region between the Kentucky and 
Cumberland rivers rapidly grew in population, and for a time 
was called Transylvania. It set up a government for itself, 
and organized a little army under the lead of a young Vir- 
ginian, George Rogers Clark,* who, in 1776, induced the 
Legislature of Virginia to convert the entire Transylvania 
country into the county of Kentucky, as a part of Virginia. 

War with the Cherokees. — In 1776 British agents in the 
Carolinas stirred up the Cherokees of the mountain region 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



EVENTS WEST OF THE APPALACHIANS 



175 




George Rogers Clark 



to make war upon settlers. The Watauga 
people successfully defended themselves, and 
later aided the people east of the mountains 
in a war that resulted in the breaking of the 
Cherokee power. 

George Rogers Clark's Expedition. — On the 
second day of January, i//"^. Colonel George 
Rogers Clark was authorized by Governor Pat- 
rick Henry, of Virginia, to go on an expe- 
dition that nothing short of the daring and 
skill of an old-time frontiersman could have carried out. 

The object of the expedition was to conquer the country 
north of the Ohio, which was held by the British, but occu- 
pied chiefly by warlike tribes of hostile Indians. That re- 
gion was claimed by Virginia as a part of her grant from the 
king (see page 47). The only white settlements within it 
were a few old French villages, whose people had become 
British subjects at the close of the French and Indian War. 
These French traders had great influence with the Indians, 
and they used it in the service of the British garrisons sta- 
tioned near them by helping to arm the savages, and by 
stirring them up to make war on the American frontier. 
Clark purposed to drive away the British garrisons, make 



Cb^rry Valley 

N E WPV O R-K 




Western country in the Revolution 



176 



THE REVOLUTION 

T 




March to Vincennes 



friends of the Frenchmen, and subdue or hold in check the 
Indians. 

He set out in May down the Ohio with a flotilla of flat- 
boats carrying his troops and some families of settlers. Sev- 
eral of the latter went with him as far as the falls of the 
Ohio, where Louisville now stands, and remained there. 
During the next month Clark set out for the mouth of the 
Tennessee. 

Leaving his boats hidden near the mouth of the Tennes- 
see, Clark marched to the old French post of Kaskaskia on 
the Mississippi. After many difficulties he got there on the 
4th of July. He crept into the town in the night, took pos- 
session of it, and by admirable management he brought 
all the residents to take the oath of allegiance to the United 
States, without killing a man. Cahokia, a few miles farther 
up the river, also surrendered. The entire population of 
Vincennes, on the Wabash, took the oath of allegiance 
when they heard the news from Kaskaskia, and the Amer- 
ican flag was raised over the fort there. 

A few months later Hamilton, the British governor of the 



EVENTS WEST OF THE APPALACHIANS 1 77 

Northwest, came down from Detroit and retook the Vni- 
cennes fort, ile could easily have overpowered Clark at 
Kaskaskia, because he had a much larger force than Clark's, 
but he thought it safe to wait till spring, and was afraid to 
undertake the march to Kaskaskia in midwinter. His 
troops were largely militia men, and he sent most of them 
home, intending to recall them in the spring. Clark heard 
of all this from an escaped prisoner and determined to move 
at once against Vincennes. He marched two hundred and 
forty miles through difficulties that would have made the 
stoutest heart quail. During the last few days he had 
nothing for his men to eat. He was marching through 
water where the weak men and the short men had to be 
held up by the taller and stronger men. Reaching Vin- 
cennes at last, he demanded the surrender of the post, and 
after a battle succeeded in conquering it. The result of this 
bold and daring stroke was to give the United States a vast 
region west of the Appalachians, embracing the present 
States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. 

Sullivan's Expedition. — In July, 1778, the Indians made an 
attack on Wyoming, in Pennsylvaina, and carried away two 
hundred and twenty-seven scalps, with only five prisoners 
alive. It is a singular fact that no women or children were 
included in this massacre. On November 1 1 the Indians 
surprised Cherry Valley, New York. The alarm was given 
in time to close the gates of the fort. Many of those 
who remained outside were massacred by the savages, as- 
sisted by Tories — as those Americans who took sides with 
the English were called at that time. 

Washington sent Sullivan with four thousand men to 
punish and break up the Six Nations, or that larger portion 
of them which held with the English. The expedition set 
out late in the summer of 1779. Houses, crops nearly ripe, 
and orchards were burned. Substantial villages of half-civ- 
ilized Indians were laid waste. The Indians, rendered 
homeless, were forced to remove to Canada, where they 
were fed by the English. 



178 



THE REVOLUTION 



Summary. — i- Emigrants had settled in what now constitutes Ken- 
tucky and Tennessee before the Revolution, and two colonies, Wa- 
tauga and Transylvania, had maintained themselves as little states. 

2. The Indians made war upon these settlements, but they success- 
fully defended themselves, finally weakening the power of the Chero- 
kees. 

3. In 1778 one of the Transylvania leaders. George Rogers Clark, 
conquered from the British the whole region north of the Ohio River. 

4. In the same year British, Tories, and Indians made incursions into 
Pennsylvania and western New York. Washington sent Sullivan to 
punish the Six Nations for this, and he did it so effectually, that the 
Indians were compelled to flee to Canada. 



CHAPTER XXVII 

THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH 

The Attack on Fort Moultrie. — The Britisli had failed dis- 
tinctly in New England, the rocky hillsides of which 
brought forth soldiers whenever they were wanted. They 




Sergeant Jasper at Fuit Moultrie 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH 1/9 

had next tried the Middle States, but they had been forced to 
evacuate every place there except New York. In 1778 they 
turned their attention to the South. They had already, in 
1776, made one futile attempt at Charles Town, South 
Carolina. 

There was a fort in Charles Town harbor built of pal- 
metto logs and unfinished on its land side. General 
Moultrie had command of this fort, and an observer said at 
the time that the people " seemed to wish a trial of their 
mettle." On the 4th of June, 1776, an English fleet ap- 
peared off the harbor and landed its forces upon a neighbor- 
ing island. On the 28th they attacked the fort. The men 
on the ships did not shoot accurately, while the men in the 
fort had been taught to fire slowly, and to hit what they shot 
at. The battle lasted for nearly ten hours. The British 
ships were badly damaged by the fire from the fort. One 
of them went aground and was left there. The battered 
fleet at last sailed away. 

During the hottest of the firing, one of the American 
flags was shot away, and Sergeant Jasper, with desperate 
courage, and at great risk to himself, went out and hoisted 
it again. For this daring deed the governor of South Caro- 
lina gave Jasper his own sword, and the exploit has ever 
since been celebrated. Jasper lost his life in 17/ 9, trying to 
repeat his bold deed during an attack on Savannah. 

Savannah and Charles Town. — In the autumn of 1778 a 
British expedition took Savannah and overran Georgia. 
Early in the next year the force at Savannah moved against 
Charles Town in South Carolina, but was beaten and driven 
away by a small force under General Lincoln, aided by the 
militia which had been called out and organized by the very 
vigorous Governor of South Carolina, John Rutledge. 
Later in 1779 Sir Henry Clinton, with a large force brought 
from New York, assailed and captured Charles Town, after 
a severe struggle. 

The Persecutions in Carolina. — Then began a persecution of 
the patriot people more disgraceful to the British than any- 



i8o 



THE REVOLUTION 




Lonjiritucl 



Greenwich 76 



thing that had gone before. All the people in Charles 
Town were put under arrest, but they were promised entire 
liberty if they would take no part in the war. In spite of 
this promise some of them were sent to prisons in Florida 
and elsewhere, and some of them were hanged. The Brit- 
ish stirred up the Tories there to make a cruel war upon 
their neighbors, and Lieutenant Colonel Tarleton was sent 
out to harry the country. 

The British hoped by this reign of terror to crush out all 
resistance at the South and then march northward for the 
conquest of the rest of the States. 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH 



I8l 



The Battle of Camden. — In 1780, General Gates was sent 
by Washington to take command of the American forces in 
the South. He was vain of his victory over Burgoyne at 
Saratoga, and thought all things easy to him. But he was, in 
fact, unfit to conduct a difficult campaign, and when he met 
the British at Camden in August he was quickly routed, 
and his army dispersed. Gates himself fled on horseback 
more than two hundred miles across North Carolina, and 
would have committed suicide but for a generous letter 
which Washington sent to him. 

The Battle of Kings Mountain — After the defeat of the 
Americans at Camden, Cornwallis, who had succeeded Clin- 
ton, sent Lieutenant Colonel Tarleton and Colonel Fer- 
guson to complete the conquest of the Carolinas and 
Georgia. Ferguson enlisted the Tories against their 
patriotic neighbors, and a fierce civil war devasted the 
region. Some North Carolina militia fled over the moun- 
tains before Ferguson, after a defeat. They told their 
neighbors in the Watauga and other settlements of Fer- 
guson's cruelty, and their story was confirmed by a message 




Battle of Kings Mountain 



1 82 THE REVOLUTION 

from Ferguson, who threatened to cross the mountains, 
overwhehn the backwoodsmen, hang their leaders, and lay 
waste their homes. This threat roused the people of the 
West to anger and grim determination. They laid their 
hands at once on their trusty and familiar rifles. When 
Ferguson heard of their advance he withdrew and took up 
a position on the crest of the stony ridge of Kings Moun- 
tain, near the South Carolina border. Here he thought 
himself safe. 

The Western Army, led by William Campbell, with 
Isaac Shelby, John Sevier, and other brave pioneers to 
assist him, got within a quarter of a mile of the British be- 
fore they were discovered. 

Uttering an Indian war whoop the backwoodsmen began 
the assault. It was stoutly met by the British, and for a 
time first one side and then the other gave way, but the 
battle raged on. Ferguson led charge after charge, and at 
last, pierced by the bullets of several of his foes at the same 
moment, he fell dead from his horse at the head of his men. 
At the end of an hour the British were beaten and compelled 
to surrender. The number engaged on each side was about 
nine hundred men. The battle was fought on October 7, 
1780. 

Cornwallis, who was invading North Carolina, now felt 
obliged to fall back toward Charles Town, fearing an at- 
tack from the victorious backwoodsmen. But having de- 
fended themselves from the threatened invasion of the 
British, those sons of the forest withdrew to their homes 
beyond the mountains to protect their families and their 
property from the Indians. 

The Campaign of General Greene in the South. — A few 
months after the defeat at Camden, General Gates was 
superseded by General Nathanael Greene,* of Rhode Island. 
Greene was one of the ablest American generals. Wash- 
ington had great confidence in him. He took command of 
a new army which had been collected in the South, recruited 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH 



183 




Battle of Cowpens 



it rapidly, and improved it by strict discipline. Under 
Greene's wise direction the prospects of the Americans be- 
gan to brighten. In January, 1781, he sent General Mor- 
gan, who had so greatly distinguished himself at Saratoga, 
with a small force on a recruiting expedition into South 
Carolina. Morgan was pursued by the British force under 
Colonel Tarleton. The two met on January 17 at a place 
called the Cowpens. A severe battle took place, and Mor- 
gan completely routed Tarleton, who lost a great part of 
his men. 

Battle of Guilford Court House. — When Cornwallis heard 
of the defeat of Tarleton at the Cowpens, he set out to en- 
counter and overwhelm Morgan. The latter succeeded in 
rejoining Greene, but the united forces were not strong- 
enough to risk a battle, and Greene skillfully retreated for 
two hundred miles across North Carolina to the borders of 
Virginia, pursued by Cornwallis. There Cornwallis gave up 
the chase of an adversary who was too wily for him, and re- 
tired to Hillsboro, North Carolina. Greene, who had been 



1 84 



THE REVOLUTION 



reenforced, then marched southward again, but managed to 
avoid a battle till he had gathered still more men. At last, 
on March 15, he encountered the British at Guilford Court 
House. After two hours of fighting, Greene found himself 
being slowly beaten. But he managed, by his skillful march- 
ings, to exhaust his adversary also ; and Cornwallis, almost 
ruined, abandoned his sick and wounded three days after 
the battle, and set out on a retreat across North Carolina, 
with Greene hard after him. It was one of Greene's pecu- 
liarities that though he never gained a victory, his defeat 
always had the effects of a success. After an exhausting 
march, Cornwallis reached Wilmington, North Carolina, 
where supplies sent from Charles Town were awaiting him. 
Greene Reconquers Most of the South. — Greene instantly 
gave up the pursuit of Cornwallis, and turned back to drive 
the British out of South Carolina. Though often checked 

and sometimes de- 
feated, he so far 
gained his object that 
in t li e Souther n 
States only Savan- 
nah, Charles Town, 
and Wilmington, the 
three chief seaports, 
remained in British 
hands. The battle of 
Hobkirk's Hill, near 
Camden, in May, and 
the battle at Eutaw 
Springs in Septem- 
ber, were the decisive 
engagements of the 
campaign. Though 
Greene was not dis- 
tinctly successful at 
either place, the 
heavy loss he inflicted on his enemy gave the result the 
character of a victory. 




Group of Lee's cavalrymen 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH 



185 




Siege of Yorktown 



Francis Marion. — Francis Marion, of South Carolina, was 
one of the most romantic of " partisan leaders," that is, 
patriots fighting on their own account, and always ready to 
engage in irregular battle for their countr}^ He made 
himself a constant terror to the British. " Light Horse 
Harry Lee " and Generals Sumter and Pickens were also 
renowned fighters in this kind of warfare, and these irreg- 
ular soldiers did much to redeem the South from the 
British. 

Arnold in Virginia. — In the meanwhile Benedict Arnold, 
the traitor, had been sent to Virginia, where he looted the 
plantations and ravaged the country. When Cornwallis, 
a little later, reached Virginia, he sent Arnold back to New 
York; and Arnold afterward made a malignant raid into 
Connecticut, burning and destroying. 

The Last Battle. — Instead of following Greene from Wil- 
mington into South Carolina, Cornwallis pushed northward 
into Virginia to join the British force that had been sent 
12 — Eeg, Hist. 



1 86 



THE REVOLUTION 



there under Arnold. He took command of the united 
bodies, and after a good deal of fighting and skirmishing 
with Lafayette, who opposed him, Cornwallis, with his army 
increased to eight thousand men, went into winter quarters 
at Yorktown, where he fortified himself. 

Washington quickly saw his opportunity. He marched 
as swiftly and secretly as he could across New Jersey, Penn- 
sylvania, and Maryland into Virginia. He gave it out that 
his movement was a feint, and that his real purpose was to 
turn about and attack Clinton at New York. When Clinton 
at last realized that Washington's real destination was 
Yorktown, it was too late. The French fleet had appeared 
off Yorktown. Nine thousand American troops and seven 
thousand French, all under command of Washington, were 
to contest with less than eight thousand British under Corn- 
wallis behind their breastworks. After nearly three weeks 
of siege and more or less active fighting. Cornwallis sur- 
rendered on October 19, 1781. 

This ended the war. The final treaty of peace was signed 
in 1783. It had been negotiated by Benjamin Franklin, 
John Jay, and John Adams on the side of the United States. 
Under this treaty the boundaries of the United States were 
to be Canada on the north, the Atlantic Ocean on the east, 
Florida on the south, and the Mississippi on the west. 

Great Britain at the same time 
ceded Florida back to Spain. 

Civilian Heroes of the Revolution. 
— Besides the men who fought for 
American independence there were 
others who rendered services 
equally great to the country's 
cause. Benjamin Franklin, in the 
darkest time, gave all his posses- 
sions to the country, and for long 
years served its interests conspicu- 
ously as its persuasive ambassador 
in Europe. Robert Morris,* at 

♦ For biography, see Appendix. 




Robert Morris 



THE REVOLUTION IN THE SOUTH 18/ 

great sacrifice to himself, provided money for the mainte- 
nance of the war which otherwise must have come to an end. 
Jefferson, Madison, the two Adamses, Otis, Pinckney, 
John Rutledge, Patrick Henry, and a score of others, ren- 
dered services to the cause quite as important as those ren- 
dered by the warriors. 

Summary.— I. In 1776 a British fleet had assailed Charles Town, 
South Carolina, and had been driven off by the fire from a fort under 
General Moultrie. 

2. Having failed in New England and the Middle States, the British 
again turned their attention to the South. They took Savannah in 1778, 
and Charles Town a year later. General Gates was sent south to com- 
mand the American forces. He was routed at Camden in August, 1780. 

3. Cornwalhs sent Tarleton and Ferguson to finish the subjugation 
of the Carolinas and Georgia. Ferguson stirred up the Tories and made 
British soldiers of them, but was defeated at King's Mountain in Octo- 
ber, 1780, by backwoodsmen under William Campbell. 

4. A few months later General Greene was put in command at the 
South. He sent General Morgan into South Carolina, who defeated 
Tarleton at the Cowpens, January, 1781. 

5. Greene's force not being strong enough to risk a battle, he skill- 
fully retreated across North Carolina until Cornwallis gave up the pur- 
suit. Greene then marched south, fought Cornwallis at Guilford Court 
House, and forced him to retreat to Wilmington. Greene immediately 
returned to South Carolina and drove the British out of the South, 
except from the seaports at Savannah, Charles Town, and Wilmington. 

6. When Greene marched into South Carolina, Cornwallis pushed 
north into Virginia, and there, after a good deal of fighting, went into 
winter quarters at Yorktown. Washington quickly and secretly marched 
from New York to Virginia and besieged Cornwallis. He was joined 
before Yorktown by seven thousand Frenchmen. After a three weeks' 
siege, on October 19, 1781, Cornwallis surrendered, and the war was in 
effect at an end. 

7. A final treaty of peace was signed in 1783. It recognized Ameri- 
can independence, and under it the country extended from Canada to 
Florida, and from the Atlantic to the Mississippi. At the same time 
England ceded Florida back again to Spain. 

Collateral Reading. — (Greene and Cornwallis) Fiske's "The Ameri- 
can Revolution," II., 244 — 290; (Yorktown) Seelye's "The Story of 
Washington," 297-307. 



FROM THE REVOLUTION 
THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 

CHAPTER XXVIII 

GOVERNMENT UNDER THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION 

The Adoption of State Constitutions. — When the Revolution 
began there were nearly three million people in the Eng- 
lish colonies in America, and all were governed under char- 
ters, or letters of instruction of some kind, derived from the 
king. Having united in resistance to oppression, the colo- 
nies one after another set aside the authority of the royal 
governors, and adopted constitutions which set up govern- 
ments of their own in a general way like those to which they 
had been accustomed. The chief difference was that the 
authority of the king was not recognized in these new gov- 
ernments. The governors who were chosen now by elec- 
tion had less power than the royal governors had exercised. 
So much were the new States afraid of executive power that 
in four of them, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Massachusetts, and 
New Hampshire, the, royal governor was replaced at first, 
not by an elected governor, but by a council. 

The Articles of Confederation. — The Congress which 
adopted the Declaration of Independence was only a body 
of men representing thirteen separate but allied countries, 
for each State considered itself an independent nation. This 
Congress had great influence, but very little authority, and 
it soon became necessary to combine the States into one 
nation for purposes of war. Articles of Confederation were 
adopted by Congress in 1777, but were not accepted by all 
the States until 1781. 

189 



190 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 

These Articles gave Congress power to declare war, make 
peace, coin money, and settle disputes between States, but 
no power to raise a dollar by taxation or to enforce any 
law. Much of the weakness and suffering of the army dur- 
ing the latter part of the Revolution was due to the inability 
of Congress to make each State pay its part in the expenses 
of the war. 1 

Under this plan Congress consisted of a single body or 
House in which each State was represented by from two to 
seven delegates, but each State, whatever its population 
might be, was permitted to cast only one vote. No im- 
portant measure could be carried without the votes of 
nine States. No change could be made in the Articles of 
Confederation without the consent of all the States. This 
plan of government was wretchedly weak, and it quickly fell 
into contempt at home and abroad. 

The Western Lands. — The delay in adopting the Articles of 
Confederation by the several States was due to the stand 
taken by Maryland and other States whose western bound- 
aries were fixed. These States insisted that all the unoccu- 
pied lands between the Alleghany or Appalachian Moun- 
tains and the Mississippi should be given up by the States 
claiming them and become the property of the general 
government, to be sold for the benefit of the whole Union. 
On the other hand, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Virginia, 
the Carolinas, and Georgia claimed these lands under early 
charters, which had set their boundaries as from " sea to 
sea," and New^ York also claimed part of them under a 
treaty with Indians. New York and Virginia were the 
largest claimants. After all the other States had signed the 
Articles of Confederation Maryland held out on this point 
until, in 1780, New York gave up her Western lands, and in 
the next year Virginia agreed to do the same. The other 
States followed the example of these two, and thus the great 
Northwest became a public domain. 

Weakness of the Confederation. — But until the public lands 
should come into demand the national authorities had no 



GOVERNMENT UNDER ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION I9I 

means of raising money with which to pay its debts or to 
carry on government. For under the Articles of Con- 
federation Congress had no power to collect taxes or to get 
money in any way except by asking the States for it, and 
the States were not bound to furnish it when asked. The 
national debt amounted to forty-two million dollars. 

In these circumstances an effort was made so to amend 
the Articles of Confederation as to allow Congress to lay a 
tax or duty of five per cent on the value of all goods im- 
ported into this country from abroad. Twelve of the thir- 
'teen States voted for this, but New York refused, and as no 
such amendment was valid until all the States assented to it, 
the plan fell through. At this time Congress itself was in 
danger of totally disappearing. Some of the States did not 
take the trouble to elect members, and sometimes there were 
not enough States represented to carry any measure. 

In brief, the Confederation, was plainly about to go to 
pieces. There was nobody to fight the Indians or to make 
treaties with them. There was no money with which to deal 
with the Barbary pirates, who were making slaves of Ameri- 
cans. The few soldiers there were in the service of the coun- 
try were left without pay, and they quickly revolted. In 1783 
a company of these mutineers marched to the hall in Phila- 
delphia where Congress met, and threatened if they were 
not paid to break into the bank which held the little money 
that the government had. The local authorities refused to 
deal with these men, and so Congress was compelled to flee 
across the river into New Jersey. 

Still worse, there arose many quarrels between the States 
which Congress could not settle. New York taxed every 
little Jersey boat that brought wood and food into the city. 
New Jersey insisted that New York should pay eighteen 
hundred dollars a year for the privilege of keeping a light- 
house on Sandy Hook. Troubles sprang up everywhere. 

Shays's Rebellion.— In all the States money was scarce and 
the people were in debt. A rebellion, caused by these condi- 
tions, broke out in western Massachusetts in 1786. Daniel 



192 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF l8i2 




^•'0 



>■ 



Shays's rebels attack the Springfield arsenal 



Shays, a Revolu- 
tionary officer, 
placed himself at 
the head of a com- 
pany of rebels who 
tried to prevent the 
courts from hear- 
ing suits for the 
collection of debts. 
For a time this re- 
bellion threatened 
serious results, but 
after a while Gen- 
eral Lincoln suc- 
ceeded in putting it 
down. This rebellion, as we shall presently see, helped to 
the adoption of a better government under the Constitution. 
The Ordinance of 1787. — One of the last acts of the Con- 
gress of the Confederation was to pass the famous ordinance 
of 1787, providing for the government of the Northwest 
Territory. This ordinance provided that the property of a 
man who died there without a will should be divided equally 
among his children instead of going all of it, or a double 
portion of it, to the eldest son, as it generally did under col- 
onial laws. It gave freedom of worship to all, provided for 
the establishment of schools, and forever forbade slavery in 
that region. It also provided that the territory, when it 
should become populous enough, should be divided into 
States, which should be admitted to the Union on equal 
terms with the original thirteen. On this plan the five 
great States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wis- 
consin have come into the Union, and new States have been 
formed on the same plan out of territories that have since 
been added to the national domain. 

The Annapolis Convention. — It was rapidly becoming plain 
to men of sense that the government could not go on as it 
was. Either the Union must be broken up into a number 



GOVERNMENT UNDER ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION I93 

of little republics constantly quarreling with one another, or 
the States must create for themselves a national government 
strong enough to attend to its duties. 

But the States were very jealous of each other and very 
much afraid that a national government strong enough to 
stand alone would deprive them of their rights. 

In 1785 commissioners from Maryland and Virginia met 
to agree upon rules for carrying on commerce in Chesa- 
peake Bay. Madison, who was one of the delegates, per- 
suaded his fellows to adjourn until the next year and to in- 
vite delegates from the other States to meet with them then. 
When they met again, at Annapolis, Maryland, only five 
of the thirteen States were represented, but Hamilton got 
the convention to adopt a formal request to all the States 
to unite in a convention to be held in Philadelphia on May 
14, 1787, for the express purpose of considering the ques- 
tion of national government. 

The Constitutional Convention. — The great leaders in all 
the States were members in this convention. Washington 
was its president, and Benjamin Franklin, tottering now 
with age, was one of its greatest minds. The session lasted 
for four months. The questions raised were difficult and 
the debates stormy. Several times it seemed impossible to 
come to an agreement, and several times the convention was 
in danger of breaking up without doing anything. But the 
wise men gathered there were strongly convinced of the 
necessity of coming to an agreement, and they succeeded 
at last in framing a Constitution. 

One trouble in agreeing was that the smaller States were 
afraid that the larger ones would outvote them in a Con- 
gress based upon population, and that they would thus lose 
their rights. This difficulty was met by making Congress 
consist of two Houses, in one of which, the Senate, each 
State should have two members and no more, thus making 
all the States equal in power without regard to the difference 
in their population. The lower House was to consist of 
representatives elected by the people in proportion to popu- 



194 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 




George Washington 



lation in the several States. No law could be made by 
Congress until it had passed both Houses. This gave to 
the smaller States an equal chance in the Senate with the 
greater States to prevent the passage of acts to which they 
objected. 

The second compromise related to slavery. The ques- 
tion to be settled was whether those States which had many 



GOVERNMENT UNDER ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION I95 

slaves should be represented according to the total number 
of their population, or only according to the number of free 
persons living within their borders. This was settled at last 
by an agreement that five slaves should count as three 
people for purposes of representation in Congress. 

The third compromise was an agreement that Congress 
should not forbid ship masters to bring slaves from other 
countries into this until the year 1808. 

The Adoption of the Constitution. — When at last the Con- 
stitution was framed, Congress submitted it to the several 
States for their approval. It could have no efifect until nine 
of the States should have ratified it. There was strong op- 
position to it in all the States. Two political parties were 
formed — the Federalists, who favored the Constitution, and 
the Anti-federalists, who were opposed to it. For a time 
the consent of nine States seemed very doubtful. It was 
then that Alexander Flamilton,* James Madison,* and John 
Jay rendered a great service to their country. Hamilton 
established a periodical called the " Federalist," which was 
written by himself, Madison, and Jay. In this periodical 
these three set forth with extraordinary force and clearness 
the arguments in behalf of the Constitution. They proved 
its necessity. With skillful persuasion they taught the 
people to realize the melancholy fate which awaited their 
native land if things were suffered to go on as they were. 
They allayed the fears of the people and induced them to 
put aside their jealousy. Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New 
Jersey were the first States to adopt the Constitution. 
Georgia followed in the next year, and the other States one 
by one consented. At last, in 1788, New Hampshire, the 
ninth State, ratified the Constitution, and this Union of 
ours was born. 

So great was the rejoicing, that Hamilton, Madison, and 
Jay became the heroes of the hour. They were called the 
fathers of the Constitution, and a mimic ship bearing Ham- 
ilton's name was borne through the streets of New York 

• For biography, see Appendix. 



196 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF t8i2 

in the celebration which followed. Rhode Island was the 
last to come into the Union, which she did in 1790. 

Provisions of the Constitution. — The Constitution framed 
at that time, with fifteen amendments which have since been 
added, is the one we still live under. Under the old Con- 
federation there was no President. The execution of the 
laws was left to a committee of Congress. The new Con- 
stitution changed all this. It separated the government 
into three equal and independent branches, as follows: 

1. The Legislative Branch, which is called in the Con- 
stitution " the Congress." It consists of a House of 
Representatives, chosen by the people in proportion to the 
population of the several States, and a Senate consisting of 
two members from each State. In order to become a law 
every measure must be voted for by a majority of the House 
of Representatives and also by a majority of the Senate. It 
must then be submitted to the President, who approves or 
disapproves it. If he approves it, it becomes a law. If he 
disapproves it, it does not become a law unless each House 
in Congress passes it again by a two-thirds vote in spite of 
the President's veto or disapproval. 

2. The Executive Branch, consisting of the President 
and public officers appointed under him. The Presi- 
dent is elected for four years. He is commander in chief of 
the army and navy. He appoints all the chief exec- 
utive officers, but his appointments must be consented 
to by the Senate before they take effect. If the Presi- 
dent dies or becomes disabled during his term the Vice 
President takes his place. The Constitution left it to 
Congress to decide who should act as President if both the 
President and Vice President should die or become dis- 
abled during their term. The law now in force provides 
that a certain member of the cabinet should succeed tem- 
porarily to the Presidency in such a case. 

3. The Judicial Branch, consisting of the Supreme 
Court of the United States and such lower courts as Con- 
gress may establish. The President appoints all Judges of 



GOVERNMENT UNDER ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION I97 

p 

the United States Courts. The Supreme Court now con- 
sists of a Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices, but 
Congress may change the number at will. 

How Presidents are Chosen. — The President and Vice 
President are not elected directly by the people, but by 
electors chosen for that purpose. Each elector has one 
vote, and each State has as many electors as it has Senators 
and Representatives in Congress. The electors are chosen 
by the people, though the State legislatures may choose 
them without a vote of the people if they see fit. The 
electors for each State meet at the State capital on an ap- 
pointed day and vote for a President and a Vice President. 

At a time appointed the two Houses of Congress meet 
together, and the President of the Senate opens the cer- 
tificates from all the States, showing how the electors have 
voted. If a majority of the electors have agreed upon one 
man for President he is declared elected, and it is the same 
with the Vice President. But if the electoral votes are so 
divided among several candidates that no one of them has 
a majority of all the votes, there is no election. In that case 
the House of Representatives must choose a President from, 
the three persons having the highest number of electoral 
votes. But in such an election the House of Representa- 
tives votes by States ; that is to say, each State has but one 
vote whether the number of its representatives be many or 
few and a majority of all the States is necessary to elect. If 
no Vice President is elected by the electors, the Senate 
chooses one. 

At first each elector voted for two persons for President, 
and the one having the highest number of votes, if that 
number was more than half the number of electors, was 
elected President, while the one having the next highest 
number was to be Vice President. This system resulted 
in difficulties, as we shall see in a later chapter, and the 
present method was adopted in its stead. The President 
must be a person born in the United States, and not less 
than thirty-five years old. 



198 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 



As a matter of fact, the electors do not vote freely, each 
for himself. They are nominated and elected in each State 
to vote for the particular candidate of their party, and they 
do so. Thus when the popular vote in the several States is 
known the result of the election is decided. 

Washington's Inauguration. — The first electors cast their 
votes in February, 1789. Congress was to have met in New 

York on March 4 to 
count the electoral 
votes, but because 
traveling was slow 
there was not a quo- 
rum present until the 
1st of April. The count 
was made on the 6th, 
and it was found that 
Washington was unan- 
imously chosen to be 
President. John 
Adams having the 
next highest number 
of votes, became Vice 
President. Washing- 
ton at once set out 
from Mount Vernon 
for New York, which 
was then the capital. 
His journey was a tri- 
umphal march. Crowned wnth a laurel wreath and riding 
a white horse, he was escorted by troops through Philadel- 
phia. At Trenton, New Jersey, he was driven across a 
bridge under an arch covered wnth flowers and evergreens. 
Young girls dressed in white strewed flowers in his path- 
way and sang songs in his praise. He reached New York 
in a barge and was received with every mark of joy on the 
part of the people. On the 30th of April he was inaugu- 
rated in great pomp at Federal Hall, on the corner of Wall 
and Nassau Streets, where his statue now stands. 




Washington taking the oath as President 



GOVERNMENT UNDER ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION 



199 



Summary. — i. The thirteen independent States plan a Confederation. 

2. The Western lands cause delay in the adoption of Articles of Con- 
federation. 

3. The ordinance providing for government of the Northwest Terri- 
tory was passed in 1787. 

4. The Confederation proving to be so weak and loosely formed that 
good government was impossible, attempts were made to form a 
stronger Union. 

5. The Constitutional Convention frames a Constitution which is 
finally adopted. 

6. Washington was elected first President, and was inaugurated with 
John Adams for Vice President on April 30, 1789, in New York city. 

Collateral Reading. — Schouler's " History of the United States," I., 
19, 22, 31, 34; Walker's "The Making of the Nation," 2-6, 9-20; 
Schouler's " History of the United States," I., 29-31, 36-47; Seelye's 
" The Story of Washington," 327-3^2. 



CHAPTER XXIX 



WASHINGTON S ADMINISTRATION 



Life in Washington's Time. — When Washington became 
President there was no such thing known in the world as a 
steamboat, a railroad, a telegraph, or a telephone. Gas and 
electric light were both unknown. Even 
kerosene oil was not discovered until many 
years later. The well-to-do used sperm oil 
in lamps, and sometimes burned spermacetti 
candles. Most houses were lighted with tal- 
low candles or with bayberry 
tallow candles, which gave off 
a perfume. Still more fre- 
quently light was got by put- 
ting a little fat into a saucer 
with a wick in it which was held up by a 
piece of cork. Sometimes iron lamps were 
hung from the wall. Houses were warmed 
Sperm-oU lamp with wood burning in fireplaces. There 





Wall lamp 



200 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF l8l2 




Candle mold 




Wall lamp 




were a few stoves, used mostly by the Ger- 
mans in Pennsylvania. 

The First Tariff.— The first need of the new 
government was that of money. The ques- 
tion of how to raise the money needed began 
at once to be discussed. It was decided after 
a little while to levy duties, or taxes, on arti- 
cles imported into this country. Such duties 

are commonly called a tariff. Tariffs are of 
two kinds — revenue tariffs and protective tar- 
iffs. A revenue tariff is one which puts a small 
tax on imported goods, so that such goods 
may freely come into the country, and so that 
the government may get revenue from the 
taxes. A protective tariff is one which charges 
so high a duty as to keep out foreign goods 
or products in some degree, and make them 
so high in price that the people w'ho make, or 
grow, or mine similar things within the country 
may charge more for them than they otherwise 
could. In other words, a protective tariff is meant 
to protect the manufacturers, miners, farmers, 
stock raisers, etc., of a country against severe 
competition with similar producers abroad. The 
first tariff made in this country was in part levied 
for revenue, but in part it was protective. 

Executive Departments. — The Constitution left 
many details of government to be arranged by 

Congress. After discussion, Congress decided to 
create three executive departments, each with a 
secretary at its head. These departments were a 
Department of Foreign Aft'airs (now called the De- 
partment of State), a Department of War, and a 
Treasury Department. As the needs of the govern- 
ment have grown, other departments have 1)een added. 
Their heads are called cabinet officers. 

The National Capital. — At its first session Congress 




Wall 
candlestick 



WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION 



20I 




decided to make Phil- 
adelphia the capital of 
the country for ten 
years. After that the 
capital was to be lo- 
cated on the Potomac 
River, and Washing- 
ton was asked to 
choose the site. In 
order that the capital 
city might not be un- 
der the control of any 
State a tract of land 
ten miles square was 
given by Virginia and 
Maryland, and called 
the District of Colum- 
bia. The part given 
by Virginia was after- 
ward ceded back to 

that State. The District of Columbia is governed wholly 
by Congress. Its people have no representative in that 
body, and no part in the choice of Presidents. 

Political Parties.— After the Constitution was adopted those 
who were called the Federal party desired to secure and 
increase the power of the central government. The oppos- 
ing party did all it could to keep power in the hands of the 
several States. Under Washington and Adams the Federal- 
ists held the reins. That party included most of the rich 
and influential people, and those who loved stately cere- 
mony. Washington was a Federalist in his opinions and 
tastes, but as President he strove to avoid taking sides. 

Alexander Hamilton. — The greatest of the Federal leaders 
was Alexander Hamilton, who had done much to induce 
the States to adopt the Constitution. Hamilton could 
not believe that the great mass of the people were fit 
to take part in the government. He beHeved in govern- 



The first cabinet 



202 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF i8i2 




Alexander Hamilton 



ment by the select few, and he wished the 
Federal government to be made as strong 
as possible in its control of affairs in all the 
States. 

Hamilton's Measures. — As first Secretary 
of the Treasury Hamilton insisted that 
Congress should provide for the ultimate 
payment of the national debt in full, and 
no sooner were measures intended to ac- 
complish that adopted by Congress than he 
proposed that the national government 
should take upon itself all the debts of the several States 
which had been incurred in carrying on the Revolution. 
There was strong opposition to this, but Hamilton carried 
through Congress a measure to that effect. 

Excise Taxes. — The tariff duties did not yield enough 
money to meet expenses and pay the debt, but it was 
thought unwise to increase them. So Hamilton advised 
Congress to levy an excise tax on distilled liquors made in 
the United States. After much opposition this was done. 
A National Bank. — In the same year, after a long and bitter 
debate, Hamilton carried through Congress a measure 
creating a national bank. 
This bank and the mint, 
established in the follow- 
ing year (1792), fur- 
nished a uniform cur- 
rency for use in all the 
States. Under advice of 
Thomas Jefferson the 
decimal system was 
adopted for our money. 
The First Republican 
Party. — All these meas- 
ures of Hamilton tended to increase the power of the central 
government. Many statesmen thought that the Federalists 
were going too far in that direction, and even that their 




New Mint, Philadelphia 



WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION 203 

measures were contrary to the Constitution, A new political 
party was therefore formed under the lead of Thomas Jeffer- 
son, who was Secretary of State. With him stood Madison, 
Randolph, and other prominent leaders. They called them- 
selves Republicans because they wished to hold the govern- 
ment to republican forms and principles. 

By the year 1793 this new party was fully organized. The 
Republicans sympathized with the revolutionists in France, 
and therefore the Federalists in contempt nicknamed them 
" Democrats." A little later the party itself adopted the 
name " Democratic-Republican," and finally dropped the 
word Republican entirely from its party name. This early 
Republican party must not be confounded with the Repub- 
lican party of our time. 

The Whisky Rebellion. — The people in western Pennsyl- 
vania were largely engaged in making whisky, which could 
be shipped to market more economically than the bulky 
grain. They naturally objected to the excise tax levied to 
provide money for the government needs, and in 1794 
efforts to collect that tax led to an armed rebellion among 
them. This was the first time that the new government 
had been called upon to exercise its powers in putting down 
a revolt, and there was serious fear that an attempt on its 
part to do so would lead to grave trouble. But Washing- 
ton was firm, and under his orders " Light Horse Harry 
Lee," at the time governor of Virginia, was sent to Pitts- 
burg with a militia force to compel obedience to the law. 
The insurrection was quieted without a battle. 

The First Census. — The first census of the United States 
was made in 1790. It showed a total population of 3,929,- 
000 in the thirteen States. Several States in our time have 
each a larger population than this. New York has more 
than twice as many people as there were in the whole coun- 
try then, and the population of New York city alone is now 
about as great as that of the whole country m 1790. 

Philadelphia was the largest city then. It had forty-two 
thousand people. New York had only thirty-three thou- 
13— Egg. Hist. 



204 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF l8l2 




sand and Boston eighteen thousand. There were no towns 
of any considerable size in the interior, except Lancaster, 

Pennsylvania. The 
country then in- 
cluded only the re- 
gion east of the 
Mississippi and 
north of Florida. 
The great bulk 
of the population 
dwelt east of the 
Appalachians and 
north of the Sa- 
vannah River. 
Georgia was sparsely populated. Western New York and 
Pennsylvania were beginning to be peopled by emigrants 
from farther east, while the regions now constituting Ohio, 
Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, Indiana, and Illinois 
were still only beginning to be settled, the great tide of 
immigration which was presently to create populous States 
there having only just begun its flow. 

About one seventh of the population of the country con- 
sisted of negro slaves. Of the Northern States, New York 
had the most slaves, about twenty thousand in number. 
But most of the negroes were in Maryland, Virginia, and 
the two Carolinas. 



Settled area in 1790 



Summary. — i. In order to raise money for the expenses of the new 
government Congress passed a tariff bill. 

2. Three cabinet officers were at first provided for by law, and others 
have been added since. 

3. Philadelphia was the national capital for ten years. Congress 
had decided to set up a capital city on the banks of the Potomac after 
that time. Virginia and Maryland gave the government a tract of land 
ten miles square for that purpose. This was called the District of 
Columbia. It is governed exclusively by Congress. That part of it 
which Virginia gave was afterward given back. 

4. Early in Washington's administration the people were divided 
into two political parties. One of these, led by Hamilton, tried to 



WASHINGTON S ADMINISTRATION 20$ 

strengthen the power of the central government, and under Hamilton's 
influence Congress passed important measures in that direction. The 
people who wished to keep the central government under a strict rein 
and to cultivate simple manners formed themselves into the Republican 
party under Thomas Jefiferson's lead. 

5. The first census (1790) showed a population of 3,929,214. 

Collateral Reading. — Seelye's " The Story of Washington," 338, 340, 
342-344; Schouler's " History of the United States," I., 223-234; II., 93, 
97; Walker's "The Making of the Nation," 66-72, 99-103. 



CHAPTER XXX. 

Washington's administration — Continued 

Beyond the Alleghanies. — After the States had ceded their 
northwestern lands to the government two land companies 
were formed to settle the region under a law of Congress 
which set apart all lands there for sale at very low prices, 
the money to be used in the payment of the public debt. 
But if settlers were to go into that territory, the Indians 
there, who numbered about thirty thousand, and who re- 
mained hostile in spite of many treaties that had been made 
with them for the sale of their lands, must be conquered. 
These fierce savages claimed all the region north of the 
Ohio, and made ceaseless war upon the whites. They re- 
fused to regard the treaties by which Congress had bought 
their lands as binding upon them, saying that those who 
had sold their lands had no right to sell them. 

The treaty of peace between Great Britain and the United 
States required the British to surrender their military posts 
at Niagara, Detroit, and Mackinac, but they found an 
excuse for not doing this. The several States of the Union 
had made laws confiscating the property of Tories and for- 
bidding the collection of money due to them. In the treaty 
the general government had agreed to get these State law's 
repealed, and it had asked the States to fulfill the promise. 
The States had refused, and Great Britain continued to hold 



206 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF l8l2 



/ '5^r~" (.Briti,h)r* 

^\ / ^>,, Wayne's J' 


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/oJpg^^^ 


Sv V™ 




^J 


Fort Wa>J<SC '^'■'''°'"'" 

/ O ^ ,' Loramie ^ \ 


""XtP"^ 




i X\ 




i. 


ml 


yIA,4 




k2.'"'"'|[ 






S V 1 R 

SCALE OF k 


G 1 N if A\ 

ILES ,> .# 





50 


100 160 



its Western forts and to stir up the hostility of the Indians, 
supplying them with arms, food, and clothing. 

Settlements North of the Ohio. — The first settlement made 
under the public land laws in what is now Ohio was made in 

1788 by a Massa- 
chusetts colony, 
and named Mari- 
etta. In the same 
year a settlement 
was made where 
Cincinnati now 
stands. 

Harmar's and St. 
Clair's Defeats. — 
The Indians were 
determined to 
drive these set- 
tlers away. For 
protection against 
them Fort Wash- 
ington was built at Cincinnati, and three hundred soldiers 
were sent to hold it. As the Indians continued to attack 
the settlers, General Harmar was ordered in 1791 to attack 
the Miami tribe, whose chief village was where Fort Wayne, 
Indiana, now stands. The Indians burned their village and 
fled. Harmar followed, but the Indians ambushed his men 
and forced him to retreat to his fort. General St. Clair, a 
Revolutionary officer, who was governor of the territory 
north of the Ohio, was sent in 1791 with a regiment to build 
forts, make roads and bridges, and hold the country, but 
the Indians surprised and routed him. 

Finally, in 1792, General Anthony Wayne, whom the In- 
dians called " the chief that never sleeps," was sent into the 
Indian country. He spent two years in building forts, en- 
listing troops, and trying to make peace with the savages. 
The British had built a fort on American soil on the Maumee 
River, and were supplying the Indians with food, ammuni- 



Indian wars in the Northwest 



WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION 



207 



tion, and military advice. When Wayne advanced against 
the Indians they fled to the neighborhood of this fort. 
Wayne attacked them (August 20, 1794) in a woodland full 
of fallen timber. After a desperate fight he beat them so 
completely that this " Battle of the Fallen Timber," as it 
was called, made an end of the war. In the next year Wayne 
made a treaty by which the tribes gave up all their claims to 
most of what is now Ohio. . 

The French Republic Asks Aid. — A revolution broke out in 
France in 1789. A republic was established there, and in 
1799 war was declared between France and England. The 
French hoped for aid from this country in return for what 
France had done for us during the Revolution, and France 
sent over as her minister a man named Genet (zhen-a). 

The Republicans here sympathized with the French, and 
would gladly have furnished privateers for use against Great 
Britain ; but the Federalists, who were in power, wanted to 
keep peace with Great Britain, and before Genet arrived 
Washington issued a proclamation declaring that this coun- 




Battle ot the Fallen Timber 



208 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 



try was friendly to both the French and the British, and 
would not permit her citizens to aid or injure either of them. 
England Interferes with American Commerce.^The treaty 
which had been made between this country and England 
provided simply for peace. It did not establish friendly 
relations between the two nations, and Great Britain refused 
to let American ships trade with the British West Indies. 
When war came between France and England French ships 
were not safe on the seas. France, therefore, threw open 
to American ships all the ports in the French West Indies 
which had before been closed to our trade. This gave the 
Americans a profitable commerce, but it also helped France. 
So England interfered. British war ships were ordered 
to search all American ships going to or from France. If 
their cargoes turned out to be provisions belonging to 
American owners, they were either seized and paid for, or 
sent to some port in a neutral country. This interference 
excited great anger in the United States. 

Impressing American Seamen. — This was not all, however. 
In order to get sailors for her war vessels England ordered 

her ships to search 
American vessels 
on the high seas, 
and take from them 
every sailor who 
had been born an 
Englishman. As 
the British officers 
who made these 
seizures were sole 
judges as to 
whether a sailor 
was or was not a 
British subject, and 
as they badly 
needed men for their ships, they seized in fact many thou- 
sands of native Americans and made them serve in the 




Impressing an American seaman 



WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION 



209 



British navy. This angered Americans so greatly that a 
new war with England at one time seemed certain. 

The Jay Treaty. — To avoid war Washington sent John Jay, 
Chief Justice of the United States, to England to make a 
treaty settling all matters in dispute. Jay succeeded in 
making a treaty by which Great Britain gave up the military 
posts she held in our territory, and allowed American ships 




Washington at Mount Vernon 



to trade in the West Indies. But she would not ^gree to 
stop seizing our sailors for her navy. In other clauses of the 
treaty each nation gave up something to the other, but on 
the whole the Americans thought that England had got the 
better of us in the bargaining. 

The Treaty with Spain. — Owning the mouth of the Mis- 
sissippi, Spain claimed the exclusive right to navigate that 
river. This cut off our Western settlements from the only 
route by which they could send their produce to market. 



2IO FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 

In 1795 Spain, however, made a treaty with us, which 
opened the river to Americans. 

Retirement of Washington. — As his second term in the 
presidency neared its end, Washington issued a farewell 
address to his countrymen, and he refused to hold office 
longer. As soon as Adams, his successor, was inaugurated, 
Washington set out for his home at Mount Vernon, and 
on the journey was everywhere received with honors. He 
was the most illustrious of the many great men of the eigh- 
teenth century. He died on the 14th of December, 1799. 

New States. — During Washington's administration three 
new States were admitted to the Union — Vermont, March 
4, 1 791; Kentucky, June i, 1792; and Tennessee, June i, 
1796. These were the first States added to the original 
thirteen. Two of them lay west of the mountains, and 
their admission to the Union was the beginning of that 
wonder-story of national growth which, in a little more than 
a hundred years, has converted a region half as great as all 
Europe from a wilderness of woodland and prairie into 
populous and highly civilized States. 

Summary. — i- After the States had ceded to the government their 
claims to the Northwest Territory, many settlers removed from the older 
parts of the country mto that region. The Indians north of the Ohio 
River were hostile, and for a year or two defeated every force sent 
against them; but at last General Anthony Wayne conquered them and 
secured a treaty (1795) by which they gave up their claims to most of 
what is now Ohio. 

2. France having set up a republic, and being at war with Great 
Britain, asked aid of the Americans in I793-. This was refused, and our 
country remained neutral. 

3. The British, however, interfered with our commerce, and after a 
time began to seize American ships and take the sailors for service in 
the British navy. This very nearly brought about a war which was 
prevented, however, by the Jay treaty. 

4. Spain claimed the right to forbid all navigation of the Mississippi 
by any but Spanish vessels. This shut out the Western settlers from a 
market for their produce. At last, in 1795, a treaty was secured which 
opened the river to all Americans. 

5 At the end of his second term Washington refused to be re- 



THE ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN ADAMS 



211 



elected, and went home to rest after his long and distinguished service 
to his country. He died in 1799, the most illustrious man in America. 

6. Vermont, Kentucky, and Tennessee were admitted to the Union 
as States during Washington's administration. 

Collateral Reading.— Roosevelt's "Winning of the West." I., 78-86, 
110-124, 134-144, 245-250, 268-271, 278-281; II., 11-25; Seelye's "The 
Story of Washington," 345-348, 35o, 35i, 355- 



CHAPTER XXXI 



THE ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN ADAMS 

Election of Adams. — The election of 1796 saw the first 
contest of rival political parties for supremacy in our gov- 
ernment. John Adams was the chief candidate of the Fed- 
eralists, Thomas Jefferson the leading candidate of the Re- 
publicans. Adams received 
seventy-one electoral votes, 
Jefiferson sixty-eight, other 
candidates (really candidates 
for Vice President) less. 
Under the system then in use 
this made Adams President 
and JefTerson Vice President. 

Trouble with France. — Jay's 
treaty prevented war with 
England, but it came near 
getting us into war with 
France. That country was 
now governed by a Direct- 
ory, which held that in mak- 




John Adams 



ing a treaty with Great Britain the United States had taken 
sides against France, and when our government sent 
Charles Cotesworth Pinckney to be our minister at Paris, 
the Directory refused to receive him, and asked him to 
leave France. News of this occurrence reached the United 
States just before Adams was installed as President. 



212 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 




The X, Y, and Z Proposition. — Fearing war with France, 
President Adams called an extra session of Congress to 
make preparations. About the same time he sent John 
Marshall, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, and Elbridge Gerry 
to Paris to settle all difficulties if possible. In- 
stead of receiving the three Americans as had 
been promised, the French Minister of Foreign 
Affairs sent agents of the Directory to them 
to suggest that as the only way to restore good 
feeling between this country and France they 
must secretly pay a large bribe to each of the 
five members of the Directory, and at the same 
time arrange for a money loan from the United 
States to the French Government. The Amer- 
ican Ministers refused to yield to such a de- 
mand. In their despatches to Congress Mar- 
shall and his companions did not give the 
names of the three agents who had asked for 
the bribe. They simply called them X, Y, and 
Z. From this the transaction came to be 
known as the X, Y, Z affair. 

When this matter was made public the people of America 
turned bitterly against the French. The popular cry was 
raised, "Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute." 
Those who had before sympathized with France now turned 
against that nation. Many of them had worn a red, white, 
and blue cockade as a sign of their sympathy with the 
French. They now put on a black cockade, which meant 
that they wanted war. The song, " Hail Columbia," was 
composed at this time, and sung throughout the land. 

Congress ordered the organization of an army, and ap- 
pointed Washington to be its commander. A naval depart- 
ment was also established in April, 1798, and vessels were 
sent out to sea as fast as they could be got ready. They 
captured several French men-of-war and many privateers. 
France did not really desire war with the United States, and 
so she made known her wish to reopen negotiations for 



Costume of the Di 
rectory period 



THE ADMINISTRATION OF JOHN ADAMS 213 

peace. The difficulty was settled in September, 1800, be- 
tween American ministers and Napoleon Bonaparte, who 
had come to the head of the French government as the 
First Consul. 

Three Unpopular Laws. — When Adams, who was a Federal- 
ist, became President his party controlled the Senate, while 
the Republicans were in the majority in the House of Repre- 
sentatives. During the excitement over the expected war 
with France the Federalists, being the war party, had gained 
strength among the people. They took advantage of this 
in order to enact three laws which proved to be displeasing 
to the people. These were passed in 1798. 

The first of them required every foreigner who came to 
this country to live here fourteen years before he could 
become a citizen. Only five years had been required before. 
The second law gave the President the right to order any 
alien or foreigner not naturalized, to leave the country if 
he considered it dangerous for the man to remain here. 
This was called the Alien Law. The third act made it a 
crime to oppose any measure of the government, or to 
write or say things to the discredit of the government, the 
President, or Congress. This was called the Sedition Act. 
These Alien and Sedition Laws were intended to keep for- 
eigners from coming to the United States and interfering- 
with the management of public affairs. 

The Resolutions of 'Ninety-eight. — In November, 1798, the 
legislature of Kentucky passed resolutions denouncing the 
Alien and Sedition Laws, and in December of the same year 
the legislature of Virginia did the same. These resolutions 
claimed for each State the right to set aside national laws, 
and this claim played an iriiportant part in the struggles 
over tariff laws and slavery during the next. half century. 
Copies of the resolutions were sent to the other States. 
Only seven of them replied, and they dififered in opinion 
with Kentucky and Virginia. 

Downfall of the Federal Party. — Before the Constitution 
was adopted the Federal party consisted of all men who 



214 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 



favored the acceptance of the Constitution by the States. 
After the government was organized upon the new plan 
the party consisted of those who wished to construe and 
apply the Constitution in ways which would strengthen the 
central government. Opposed to them were all who feared 
a strong central government as dangerous to the liberty of 
the States, and these presently formed themselves into the 
Republican party, as we have seen (page 202). 

When trouble arose with France the Federalists 
gained popularity by favoring war, but they lost it presently 
by sending a second mission to France after the first one had 
been so grossly insulted. The passage of the Alien and 
Sedition Laws still further weakened the Federalists.' Demo- 
cratic feeling was rapidly growing throughout the country. 
When the election of 1800 occurred John Adams's party 
had grown too weak to reelect him. 

Chief Justice Marshall. — In the last months of Adams's 
term he made an appointment which in its influence upon 

American government and his- 
tory proved to be the most im- 
portant act of his life. He made 
John Marshall * Chief Justice of 
the United States. From his ap- 
pointment in 1 80 1 until his death 
in 1835 Marshall in his decisions 
interpreted the Constitution so 
logically, so consistently, and al- 
together so admirably as to give 
it a breadth and meaning which 
it could not otherwise have had. 
The Second Census, taken in 
1800, showed a population of 
5,309,000. The increase was 
largely in the region west of the mountains. The rich lands 
there were offered to settlers at very small cost, and multi- 
tudes of enterprisirig men seized the opportunity to better 

their condition. * For biography, see Appendix, 




John Marshall 



JEFFERSON S ADMINISTRATION 21$ 

Summary. — i. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were the leading 
candidates for President to succeed Washington. Adams was elected 
by a majority of the electors, Jeflerson becoming Vice President. 

2. Trouble broke out with France, and when ministers were sent 
to that country to settle it the French Minister of State demanded a 
bribe. This was refused, and for a time war was threatened. American 
ships captured several French war ships and privateers, but the matter 
was arranged peaceably in 1800. 

3. During Adams's administration some laws were passed called the 
Alien and Sedition Laws, which greatly alarmed and offended many of 
the people. Democratic feeling grew so rapidly that when a new elec- 
tion came, in 1800, John Adams was defeated by his Republican rival, 
Thomas Jefferson. 

4. John Marshall was appointed to be Chief Justice. 

Collateral Reading. — Schouler's " History of the United States," I., 
273-287, 391-398. 423-426, 475-476; Walker's "The Making of the 
Nation," 137-143, I45-I50. 



CHAPTER XXXII 

Jefferson's administration 

The Election of 1800. — It has already been explained (page 
197) that under the system first provided for the election 
of Presidents each elector voted for two candidates, and the 
one having the highest number of electoral votes, if the 
choice of a majority of the electors, was to be President, 
while the one next to him in the number of votes became 
Vice President. In the election of 1800 the seventy-three 
Republican electors voted for Thomas Jefferson and Aaron 
Burr and the sixty-five Federal electors with a single ex- 
ception voted for John Adams and Charles C. Pinckney. 
The Republicans intended that Jefferson should be Presi- 
dent and Burr Vice President. But as Jefferson and Burr 
had an equal number of votes neither was elected. The 
House of Representatives, therefore, under the Constitu- 
tion must choose one of the two to be President. 



2l6 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 




The Federalists greatly disliked Jefferson, and most of 
them voted for Burr. The first ballot was eight States for 
Jefferson, six for Burr, and two blank, the representatives 
of two States being equally divided. As nine States were 
necessary for a choice, balloting was kept up for a week, 
amid great excitement, and there was danger that the 4th of 



JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION 



217 



March would come before a choice could be made. To pre- 
vent this some of the Federalists cast blank votes, and Jef- 
ferson was elected President, leaving Burr to be Vice Presi- 
dent. In 1804 the Constitution was so amended as to 
prevent a like difficulty in future. It was provided that each 
elector, instead of voting for two men for President, should 
vote for one for President and one for Vice President. 

The New Capital City.^In the autumn of 1800 the capital 
was removed to Washington city, as had been provided by 
law ten years before. During that ten years the city had 
been laid out, and a capitol, of which Washington himself 
laid the corner stone, had been partly built. Jefferson was 




The Capitol at Washington, about iSoo 

the first President inaugurated in the new capitol. He 
went on foot and in ordinary dress to the building where 
he took the oath of office. It was his fixed purpose to intro- 
duce simple manners into governmental affairs. 

Jefferson's Measures, — The Republican majority in Con- 
gress repealed some laws made by the Federalists. They 
reduced the size of the army and navy, cut down the ex- 
penses of government, and used surplus revenues in paying 
the national debt. Jefferson introduced into the public ser- 
vice the theory that both political parties should be fairly 
represented in the offices, and that vacancies should be made 
only by the death, resignation, or necessary removal of those 
already in the service. He refused to appoint any of his own 
relatives to office on the ground that the people would not 
believe that such appointments were given for merit alone. 



?l8 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF l8l2 

Trouble with Tripoli and Algiers. — The little Barbary 
States — Tripoli, Tunis, Algiers, and Morocco — lying on the 
northern coast of Africa, lived chiefly by piracy. Their 
swift armed vessels would lie in wait to capture and rob the 
ships of Christian nations, carrying off their crews to be sold 
as slaves, or to be ransomed by the payment of money. 
Instead of putting down these pirates, the nations of Europe 
protected their own trade by paying large sums of money 
every year as a tribute to the piratical states. In 1785 two 
American vessels were seized by the pirates and carried to 
Algiers, where their crews were sold as slaves. An effort 
was made to ransom them, but Algiers demanded as much 
as sixty thousand dollars for their release. Eleven more 
American vessels were captured in 1793, and one hundred 
and nine men were carried into slavery. 

In 1795 the United States made a treaty with Algiers, 
paying that country a large sum of money for the freeing of 
all Americans who had been captured and enslaved. The 
American government also promised to pay tribute every 
year on condition that American ships should not be seized. 
Soon afterwards our government made treaties with Tunis 
and Tripoli, paying money for the release of captured 
Americans, but not promising an annual tribute, as had 
been done in the case of Algiers. In 1800 Tripoli de- 
manded that the United States should give her a frigate 
or a brig of war, and in the next year the Bey of Tunis sent 
word that he wanted forty cannon and ten thousand stands 
of arms. These things were not sent, and in 1801 the Pasha 
of Tripoli declared war on the United States. 

The War with Tripoli. — President Jefferson would not con- 
sent that this country should pay tribute to petty piratical 
states, and sent over a little fleet of war vessels. Tripoli had 
sent out ships to meet and capture American merchant ves- 
sels, and the frigate " Philadelphia " blockaded some of 
these cruisers near Gibraltar, while the frigate " President " 
ran into the Mediterranean and captured a pirate vessel near 
the coast of Tripoli. This checked piracy for a time, but 



JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION 219 

did not end it completely. In 1803 Commodore Edward 
Preble was sent to the Mediterranean with additional ves- 
sels and ordered to take command. He directed the " Phila- 
delphia " and the sloop " Vixen " to blockade Tripoli. In 
chasing a blockade runner the " Philadelphia " struck an 
unknown rock and was captured by the Tripolitans. Her 
commander, Captain Bainbridge, and his crew of more than 
three hundred Americans were made prisoners. 

Decatur's Exploit. — It stung the American officers to the 
quick, as they lay off Tripoli, to see the " Philadelphia " 
lying in the harbor with the flag of Tripoli floating over her. 
A young officer named Stephen Decatur had command of a 
little ship which he had captured from the enemy and had 
named the " Intrepid." In this little ship he sailed into the 
harbor, carrying with him a Maltese pilot, whose speech 
would not betray the fact that the " Intrepid " had an Ameri- 
can crew. The pilot hailed the men on the " Philadelphia " 
and reported that he had lost both his anchors. He asked 
permission to tie up his little ship by the side of the big one 
for the night. No sooner had Decatur made his ship fast to 
the " Philadelphia's " side than with his seventy-five officers 
and men he boarded her, drove her piratical crew overboard, 
set fire to her, and returned to the " Intrepid." As he sailed 
away to the sea the shore batteries pounded his little ship, 
while his men gave cheer after cheer of triumph. Decatur 
had not lost a man. 

Peace with Tripoli. — After two years more of blockading 
and fighting, a large American fleet appeared before Tripoli 
in 1805, and the Pasha quickly came to terms. He accepted 
a moderate sum as a ransom for his prisoners, and consented 
to a treaty of peace. 

The Purchase of Louisiana. — In the year 1800 Spain agreed 
with Napoleon to cede Louisiana back again to France. The 
agreement was kept secret for a time, Napoleon not being 
ready to take possession. The Spanish officer who was in 
control at New Orleans during this waiting time issued an 
order in 1802 forbidding Americans to ship their produce 



JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION 221 

to New Orleans, as they had a right to do under the treaty 
made seven years before. The people who lived in the valley 
of the Mississippi were greatly excited over this order, which 
deprived them of a market for their goods. 

Not wishing to go to war in order to keep the French out 
of Louisiana, Jefferson got leave from Congress to buy New 
Orleans and the region round about, together with West 
Florida. James Monroe was sent over to help the Ameri- 
can minister at Paris in making the purchase. Napoleon at 
that time was on the eve of another war with England, and 
in view of that he offered to sell not only New Orleans, but 
the whole vast region then called Louisiana. This offer was 
so good that the American commissioners accepted it with- 
out waiting for orders, and within less than three weeks the 
whole matter was completed. The United States paid 
fifteen million dollars for the territory thus gained. It was 
larger in area than the whole of the United States had been 
before. It included nearly all the region between the Mis- 
sissippi River and the Rocky Mountains. This region was 
soon divided into the two Territories of Orleans and Louis- 
iana. 

The Oregon Country. — A good many years before this time 
a certain Captain Gray * sailed from Boston to trade in the 
Oregon country on the Pacific coast, after which he went to 
China and on around the world, reaching home in 1790. 
Two years later he w^ent to Oregon again, and entered the 
great river which the Indians called by that name. He 
named it after his own ship, the " Columbia." His discovery 
gave the United States a claim to all the territory drained 
by the Columbia River. 

Lewis and Clark's Expedition. — In 1804 Jefferson sent 
Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on a most daring and 
romantic expedition up the Missouri River and across the 
Rocky Mountains to the Columbia. The great region in- 
cluded in the Louisiana purchase was in large part an un- 
known land. Lewis and Clark were sent to explore both 

♦ For biography, see Appendix. 
14— Egg. Hist. 



222 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 




A trail followed by Lewis and Clark, 
and still in use 



that and the Oregon coun- 
try. After two years and 
four months spent in the 
wilderness, during which 
time they had wintered on 
the Cohunbia River, the 
explorers returned to civi- 
lization. Their expedition, 
added to Gray's discovery, 
strengthened the claim of 
the United States to that 
far northwestern region. 

Pike's Exploration. — In 
1805 ^"d 1806 Governor 
Wilkinson, of Louisiana, 
sent Lieutenant Zebulon 
Pike to explore the West- 
ern country. Pike went up 
the Mississippi nearly to 
its source. In the next year he reached the neighborhood 
of the mountain which we now call Pikes Peak. 

Summary. — i- John Adams was defeated in 1800 for reelection to the 
Presidency. A tie vote between Jefferson and Burr threw the election 
into the House of Representative, where Jefferson was chosen Presi- 
dent. He was inaugurated in Washington city, which had become the 
capital during the year of his election. 

2. After much trouble with the piratical states of North Africa 
Jefferson refused to pay them the tribute they demanded as the price of 
letting our ships and sailors alone. Instead of paying tribute he sent war 
vessels to the Mediterranean. 

3. Spain having ceded Louisiana back to France, Jefferson pur- 
cliased the whole of that region from Napoleon in 1803, thus securing 
for the United States nearly all the vast region between the Mississippi 
River and the Rocky Mountains. 

4. Some years earlier an American ship captain had discovered the 
mouth of the Columbia River, and in 1804 an expedition under Lewis 
and Clark, sent out by Jefferson, went over the Rocky Mountains and 
wintered on the Columbia. This gave to the United States a claim to 
all the Oregon country. Another expedition under Pike explored the 
sources of the Mississippi in 1805. 



JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION 223 

Collateral Reading.— Schouler's " History of the United States," II., 
16-18, 43-48; Walker's " The Making of the Nation," 168, 169, 177-180; 
McMaster's " History of the People of the United States," IV., 470- 
473- 478. 



CHAPTER XXXIII 

Jefferson's administration — Continued 

The Election of 1804. — The election of 1804 was the first 
one held under our present method of choosing a President 
and Vice President. Thomas Jefferson, who was again the 
candidate of the Republicans for President, was reelected, 
with George Clinton, of New York, for Vice President. 
Burr, having become unpopular, was dropped. The Fed- 
eral party had by this time become very y^eak. 

British Interference with Our Commerce. — War between 
England and France was declared again in 1803, and again 
the United States became involved m difficulties with both 
nations. Each tried to prevent American ships from 
trading with the other. During the previous war England 
had allowed American vessels to carry goods between 
France and her colonies, provided the ships did not sail 
directly from one French port to another, but stopped 
somewhere in the United States on the voyage. In 1805, 
however, England decided that American vessels must not 
carry French cargoes at all between that country and her 
colonies. Under this decision more than one hundred 
American ships were seized near our ports in that year, and 
a large part of their crews were forced into the British 
service. 

The Non-importation Act. — In April, 1806, Congress 
passed an act forbidding the importation from England to 
America of certain articles which could be made in this 
country. The object of this was to teach England the im- 
portance of the American market for her goods, and thus 



224 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 

compel better treatment for our merchant ships. The 
measure failed to accomplish its purpose and was soon 
repealed. 

Hostile Decrees of Great Britain and France. — England and 
France decided to injure each other by interfering with 
trade. Napoleon began it by forbidding British ships to 
enter the ports of Bremen and Hamburg. Next England 
declared France and all her allies blockaded. Napoleon 
in return issued a decree at Berlin declaring all English ports 
under blockade. In January, 1807, England put forth an 
order forbidding neutral ships to enter the ports of France 
or her allies, and in November of the same year another 
order was issued declaring that a neutral vessel attempting 
to enter any port in any country from which British ships 
were excluded should be lawful prey to England unless it 
had first landed in England. A month later Napoleon 
issued a decree from Milan declaring that no vessel bound 
for or hailing from Great Britain or her colonies should be 
considered a neutral, and that all such vessels should be 
subject to seizure. 

The Embargo.— These things greatly annoyed the Ameri- 
cans and injured their commerce. But this country was not 
then well prepared to make war in defense of her rights on 
the sea. President Jefferson was trying to pay off the debt 
incurred by the nation during the Revolution, and the time 
seemed near when that might be done. The country had 
prospered greatly under Jefferson's administration, and he 
thought that without going to war the United States might 
force the repeal of the offensive decrees of England and 
France simply by stopping all trade of this country with the 
outside world. On his recommendation Congress passed an 
act in December, 1807, which forbade any merchant ship to 
sail from the United States for any foreign port. This act 
was called " the Embargo of 1807," and sometimes " Jeffer- 
son's Embargo." 

The enactment of this law did much harm and no good. 
New England and New York suffered greatly by the de- 



JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION 



225 




struction of their commerce, and some hot-headed people 
in the Eastern States even talked of dissolving the Union. 

The "Chesapeake" and the "Leopard." — In the spring- of 1807 
the United States frigate "Chesapeake" lay at Washington 
getting ready to sail for 
the Mediterranean. The 
British minister notified 
our government that the 
" Chesapeake " had in 
her crew three deserters 
from the British navy, 
and demanded their sur- 
render. The three men 
declared that they were 
American citizens who 
had been forced into the 
British service. 

In June the " Chesa- 
peake " sailed, but a Brit- 
ish war ship, the " Leop- 
ard," ran out ahead of 
her. When forty-five 
miles from land the 
" Leopard " hailed the 
" Chesapeake " and de- 
manded a muster of the 
crew in order that a 
search might be made for deserters. This demand was re- 
fused. The '* Leopard " then fired a shot across the 
" Chesapeake's " bow as a signal for her to stop. But she 
refused to stop. Thereupon the " Leopard " opened fire 
upon her, and soon compelled her to submit. The " Leop- 
ard's " ofificers boarded her and took off four of her crew, 
all of whom stoutly insisted that they were American citi- 
zens. 

When the " Chesapeake " returned and reported this out- 
rage there was great excitement, and war was freely talked 




Fight between 



the " Chesapeake " 
Leopard " 



and 



226 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF l8i2 

of, but Jefferson decided first to demand reparation from 
Great Britain. The British government disowned the act of 
which JefTerson complained, and issued an order for the 
return of three of the men seized. One of them had died, 
but two were formally returned to the " Chesapeake." The 
British also paid an indemnity to the families of the men 
who had been killed on board the American ship. 

Burr's Conspiracy. — When Aaron Burr found himself at 
the end of his career in politics because of his conduct and 
character, which were detested by men of all parties, he 
grew very bitter towards those whom he held responsible 
for his downfall. Among these was Alexander Hamilton, 
and Burr by way of revenge harassed him until he forced 
him into a duel and killed him. This aroused great anger, 
and Burr saw clearly that there was no further hope for him 
either in public life or in the practice of his profession of the 
law. He therefore formed a plan to set up an empire for 
himself in the Southwest. 

With a little body of men in 1807 he went down the Ohio 
and Mississippi as far as Natchez on his way to New Orleans. 
He there learned that his plans had been betrayed to the 
government. He sank his chests of arms in the river and 
fled. When arrested he was tried for treason on the ground 
that he had sought to separate Louisiana and the country 
west of the Mississippi from the Union. No act of the kind 
that the law calls treason could be proved against him, and 
he was therefore released. 

The First Northwestern State. — After Wayne's treaty with 
the Indians was made (1795) a great tide of emigration set 
in which rapidly peopled the Northwest Territory. In 1800 
the Territory was divided, and its western part was erected 
into a new Territory called Indiana. The eastern part with 
new limits was admitted to the Union as the State of Ohio, 
February 19, 1803. 

Summary.— In 1804 Jefferson was reelected President, with very 
little opposition. 

2. War having again broken out between England and France, both 



WATER TRAVEL 22/ 

of those countries adopted measures to injure each other's trade. These 
measures nearly destroyed American commerce. 

3. What still survived of our commerce was ruined by the Embargo 
Act of 1807. This was a law stopping all trade between the United 
States and other countries. 

4. The British still claimed the right to search American ships and 
take from them sailors whom they held to be Englishmen. The United 
States war ship " Chesapeake " was boarded by the British war ship 
" Leopard " in 1807, whose commander took ofif four of her sailors. Jef- 
ferson demanded reparation, and the British government ordered the 
return of three of the men seized and paid money to the families of the 
men who had been killed in the fight. 

5. Having killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel, Aaron Burr found 
himself everywhere detested. In anger and disappointment he planned 
to set up an empire for himself in the Southwest. His plans were dis- 
covered, and he ffed. He was afterwards arrested and tried for treason, 
but was not convicted. 

Collateral Reading. — Schouler's "History of the United States," II., 
62, 96-98, 101-103, 1 19-122, 145-148, 158-165; Walker's "The Making 
of the Nation," 199-203. 



CHAPTER XXXIV 

WATER TRAVEL 

Boats and Boating. — Before the Revolution nearly all the 
settlements in this country lay either upon the seacoast or 
along the banks of rivers. The people's easiest method of 
getting about and of carrying their goods from one point to 
another was by boats. In the early colonial days, as we 
have seen, the boats were mainly canoes or very small sail- 
boats. Little by little larger boats came into use, and espe- 
cially sloops and schooners, which had been introduced by 
the Dutch. 

Flatboats. — On the Western rivers the most familiar form 
of craft was the flatboat. This was a mere box, fifty or 
more feet in length and sixteen feet wide. It had no slope 
at bow or stern. The bow was merely a place for getting 
in -and out. At the stern was a little cabin where the boat- 



228 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 

men slept and did their rude cooking. Even after steam 
boats came into use the greater part of the carrying on 





Flatboat 

Western rivers was done with llatboats. Hundreds of them 
went down the Ohio and Mississippi every year. 

The Keel Boat. — Unhke the flatboat, the keel boat was not 
built to be broken up after a single journey. She was 

intended to ply both up and 
down the river. Keel boats 
were usually pushed up the 
stream with long poles. 
Where the current was too 
strong for this the boat was 
" cordelled," that is to say, 
she was pulled up the river 
by her boatmen, who walked 
on the bank, tugging at ropes so arranged as to make the 
steering easy. 

Early Experiments with Steam. — Robert Fulton * was not 
the inventor of the steamboat, but it was he who first 
brought steamboats into practical use. As early as 1783 
John Fitch had built a steamboat on the Delaware. After 
a time it was abandoned as a practical failure. Another 
man, named Rumsey, experimented with a steamboat in 
1786. It was a failure from the first. 

Stevens's Experiment. — John Stevens, of Hoboken, New 
Jersey, on the Hudson, was a man of wealth and great 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



Keel boat 



WATER TRAVEL 



229 




Stevens's steamboat 



mechanical ability. He worked for 
many years over the problem of using 
steam to drive boats. He finally built a 
boat with a tubular boiler and a screw 
propeller, two things which were 
brought back into use as new inven- 
tions long after Stevens had ceased to 
employ them. Stevens was a year be- 
hind Fulton in building a side-wheel steamboat and getting 
it to work well. As Fulton had secured the sole right to 
run steamboats on the Hudson, Stevens sent his craft to 
Philadelphia. 

Fulton's Success. — Those who had gone before Fulton with 
their experiments had tried nothing better than the old- 
fashioned steam engine 
/N:^ I \ then in use for pumping 

water. Watt had invented 
a much better kind of en- 
gine, and Fulton got per- 
mission to bring one of 
these to America. He went 
to England to superintend the building of it, and in 1807 he 
ran his first steamboat, the " Clermont," from New York to 
Albany and back again. This was the beginning of prac- 
tical steam navigation. 

Western Steamboats. — The great length of the Western 
rivers, and the lack of roads and bridges in that rapidly- 
growing region, gave special importance to steamboats in 
that part of the country. Only four years after the " Cler- 
mont " was launched on the Hudson, Fulton had a steam- 
boat afloat which ran on the Ohio from Pittsburg all the 
way to New Orleans in 181 1. Within a few years the West- 
ern rivers were thronged with steamboats of every size and 
style, and as the years went on these grew better and finer 
until at the time of the Civil War many of them were float- 
ing palaces. After the Civil War railroads were built in 
every direction, and little by little the steamboat lost its 
control of the carrying trade. 




The "Clermont" 



230 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF l8l2 

Summary.— I In colonial days, when most of the settlers lived near 
the coast, canoes, rowboats, and sailboats were their easiest means of 
travel. 

2. When the settlers reached the Ohio and Mississippi valleys, flat- 
boats were used for floating down these rivers, and were broken up for 
lumber at the end of the voyage. Keel boats were also used, which 
were poled or " cordelled " up stream. 

3. Fitch, Rumsey. and Stevens experimented with steamboats in the 
latter part of the eighteenth century, but Robert Fulton made the first 
successful steamboat, and ran it up the Hudson in 1807. 

4. In 181 1 steamboats were launched on the Western rivers, and for 
many years were the favorite means for travel in that region. 

Collateral Reading. —Parton's "Book of Biography." 155158; Mc- 
Master's " History of the People of the United States." IV , 397-407- 



CHAPTER XXXV. 

THE BEGINNING OF THE WAR OF l8l2 

The Election of Madison. — Following the example of Wash- 
ington, Jefferson refused to be elected President for a third 

term. In 1808 James Madi- 
son was the Republican can- 
didate, and was elected by a 
large majority, with George 
Clinton for Vice President. 

The Repeal of the Embargo 
— The Non-intercourse Act. — 
Just before Madison took of- 
fice Congress repealed the 
embargo which had forbid- 
den all trade between this 
and foreign countries. In its 
place Congress enacted a 
James Madison Non-intercourse law. This 

act permitted trade with all 
countries except England and France, and authorized the 
President to permit trade with either of those countries 
whenever it should withdraw its unfriendly orders or de- 




THE BEGINNING OF THE WAR OF l8t2 231 

crees. This act went into effect on the day of Madison's 
inauguration and was repealed in 1810. Under it commerce 
quickly revived, but our ships were sometimes seized by the 
English and French. 

The act repealing it provided that if either Great Britain 
or France should cancel her hostile decrees American ships 
should be forbidden to trade with the other of the two 
nations. Napoleon announced that his decrees would cease 
to be in force after November i of that year if the United 
States would again declare non-intercourse with England. 
As England still refused to revoke her orders against 
us the President issued a proclamation on November 2 per- 
mitting trade with France, but forbidding it with Great 
Britain unless she should within three months revoke the 
hostile orders. 

This had no effect. British cruisers lay in wait for Ameri- 
can merchant vessels leaving port, and captured many of 
them. In May, 1811, a British frigate boarded an Ameri- 
can brig and impressed one of its passengers, a native of 
the United States, into the British service. A few days 
later the American frigate " President," which had been 
sent out to demand the delivery of the man, encountered 
the British ship " Little Belt " at sea. Somehow the two 
ships got into a fight with each other although war had not 
been declared. This affair still further angered the Amer- 
icans, and it was obvious that war was not far off. 

Indian War in the Northwest. — In the meanwhile actual 
war with the Indians in the Northwest was in progress. It 
had been stirred up by Tecumseh and Elkswatawa, twin 
brothers, of the Shawnee tribe. They gathered around 
them men of all tribes, and taught them that the treaties by 
which Indian lands had been bought by our government 
were not binding. They held that no one Indian tribe could 
sell or cede its land, but that all the Indians owned it. 
Tecumseh made long journeys to different tribes, and drew 
into his scheme many young warriors who were eager to 
fight the white men. 



232 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF l8l2 

In 1810 William Henry Harrison * made a treaty at Fort 
Wayne by which the Indians ceded to the United States 
three million acres of land on the upper Wabash, including 
the tract on which Tecumseh's Indians had settled, though 
they had no claim to it. Tecumseh threatened to kill the 
Indian chiefs who had made this treaty, and he gathered 
about him warriors enough to endanger the entire North- 
western region. 

Battle of Tippecanoe. — William Henry Harrison was at that 
time governor of Indiana Territory. He was a young man 




Battle of Tippecanoe 

of great personal courage and much military ability. In 
July, 181 1, he marched from Vincennes to attack Tecum- 
seh's brother at Tippecanoe Creek before he was ready to 
bring on the war. Harrison made demands of the In- 
dians which they asked time to consider, but as Tecumseh 
was absent the Indians set themselves to dancing and howl- 
ing until, becoming excited, they set upon the white men 
before daylight. In the battle that followed they were 
severely defeated. This was called the battle of Tippecanoe, 
and it made Harrison famous. But although the Indians 
were defeated Tecumseh was not crushed, nor had he and 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



THE BEGINNING OF THE WAR OF l8l2 



233 



his brother, who was called " The Prophet," lost their in- 
fluence over the Indians. 

The Declaration of War. — The elections of 18 10 had 
brought into Congress many men who were in favor of war 
with Great Britain in defense of our commerce. The States 
were already organizing their militia and preparing for the 
struggle. Madison was anxious to avoid war, but was at 
last induced to yield to the popular will, and on June 18, 
18 1 2, war was declared by Congress. 

Plan of the Campaign. — The Americans planned to invade 
Canada and conquer it before troops could arrive from 
England. England, however, struck the first blow, taking 
Fort Mackinac, on an island in the strait between Lake 
Michigan and Lake Huron. 

Hull's Surrender. — William Hull, governor of Michigan 
Territory, was made a brigadier general, and placed in com- 
mand of troops who were to in- 
vade Canada. He crossed into 
Canada on the morning of July 
12, 1812, just above Detroit. 
Meeting no opposition he went 
into camp and issued a proclama- 
tion offering the protection of the 
United States to all Canadians 
who should take no part in the 
war. He fortified his camp, but 
delayed making an attack on Mai- 
den, the British post which lay 
near. On the 28th news came 
that Fort Mackinac had been 
taken, and Hull did nothing more 
except go back to Detroit. On 
the 1 6th of August the British 
General Brock, with an army 
much smaller than Hull's, crossed into Michigan, and Hull, 
without a fight, surrendered the fort, his army, and the 
Territory of Michigan. 







The West in I8H-12 



234 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 

Two Other invasions of Canada were attempted, one of 
them by way of the Niagara River, and the other by way 
of Lake Champlain. " Both completely failed. 

The War at Sea. — Great Britain at that time had more 
than a thousand fighting ships, while the United States had 
only sixteen, with a few gunboats. The officers of our navy 
were well trained and as gallant men as ever stood upon a 
deck. At the outset nothing was expected of our little navy 
except to defend the coast while the army should conquer 
Canada. 

The Capture of English Ships. — But while the army was 
failing in its first campaign, as we have seen, the gallant little 
navy was doing deeds that still echo in history. On July 13, 
three days before Hull's surrender, the American frigate 
" Essex," under Captain Porter, while cruising alone off the 
coast of Newfoundland, disguised as a merchantman, at- 
tacked and captured the British ship " Alert," which was 
convoying a fleet of transports. This was the first war vessel 
taken from the English, and though it was a much smaller 
ship than the " Essex " the capture was a surprise to both 
sides. Four days later five British ships chased the frigate 
" Constitution," and continued to pursue her for three days 
and nights ; but the American ship was so well sailed that she 
escaped in safety. The commander of the " Constitution " 
was Captain Hull, and his skill on this occasion gave him a 
high reputation for seamanship. 

One of the vessels which pursued the " Constitution " was 
the frigate " Guerriere." In the next month Captain Hull 
put to sea again in the " Constitution," and on August 19th 
he encountered the " Guerriere," and captured her after an 
engagement of only half an hour. Two months later the 
American sloop . " Wasp " captured the English brig 
" Frolic." About the same time Decatur, with the frigate 
" United States," attacked and captured the " Macedonian " 
near the coast of Africa. In spite of the distance, Decatur 
brought his badly shattered prize to port, in Connecticut. 
Finally, during this same year, the " Constitution," under 



THE BEGINNING OF THE WAR OF i8l2 



235 




Captain Bainbridge, captured 
the British frigate "Java" 
near Brazil. 

As the war had grown out 
of England's aggressions at 
sea, both officers and men of 
the navy were ready to risk 
everything for victory. Orders to a commander, direct- 
ing him to stay in port, often found him beyond reach 
of delivery, he having put to sea in haste for fear that such 
orders would come. When battle was on, the officers of 



Cannon mounted for navy 




Flintlock musket 



i 



American ships were so eager to board the enemy's vessel, 
that they sometimes held one another back in the efforts 
of each to be the first over the side of the ship. 

The " Hornet " Sinks the " Peacock."— The 
loss of five war ships in as* many months 
was a grievous shock to England, and she 
blamed her naval authorities for having 
underrated the American navy. The next 
year opened with another loss for England. 
In February, 1813, Captain Lawrence in the 
" Hornet " met the British ship " Peacock," 
and sank her so quickly that she carried 
down part of her own crew and three men 
from the " Hornet " who had gone to the 
rescue. 

The " Chesapeake " and the " Shannon." — Cap- 
tain Lawrence was promoted to the com- 
mand of the " Chesapeake " and joined her 
shortly before she was ready to sail from 
Cutlass Boston. He had no time to organize or 



236 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 

train his crew, and many of his men were untrustworthy. 
The British cruiser " Shannon " lay off Boston Harbor in 
full view, waiting for the " Chesapeake " to come out. Cap- 
tain Lawrence sailed out on June i, 1813. Late in the after- 
noon the two ships met about thirty miles at sea, and the 
battle opened. It lasted only fifteen minutes. Lawrence fell 
mortally wounded. As he was carried from the deck he 
gave his last order: " Don't give up the ship." The British 
boarded the " Chesapeake " with little resistance and were 
soon in possession. 

Other American Losses at Sea. — In July of this year the 
American brig "Argos," cruising near the English and Irish 
coasts, captured a large number of British merchant vessels. 
The British brig " Pelican " encountered the " Argos " and 
captured her. Early in 1814 the " Essex " was captured 
and destroyed by two British vessels, the " Phoebe " and the 
" Cherub," after a gallant resistance. 

Summary. — i- James Madison was elected in 1808 to succeed Jeffer- 
son as President. 

2. Congress repealed the Embargo but passed other laws concerning 
British and French interference with our commerce. These acts failed 
of effects, and the trouble with England grew worse. 

3. Meanwhile a war with the Indians was going on in the Northwest. 
It was ended for a time in 181 1 by the battle of Tippecanoe, in which 
Harrison defeated the forces of the Indian chief Tecumseh. 

4. Matters between this country and England grew steadily worse, 
and war was declared in the summer of 1812. 

5. The United States had scarcely any navy, while the British navy 
was the strongest in the world. The American plan was for the navy 
to guard the coast while the army should push into Canada and conquer 
that region before the British could send armies to defend it. The plan 
failed completely. One of our three invading armies surrendered with- 
out a battle, and the other two accomplished nothing of moment. 

6. On the other hand, our little navy did wonders that year. Our 
war ships captured five British armed vessels within five months, and set 
the country wild with rejoicing. During 1812 the results at sea were 
less unequal, several American ships being captured or destroyed. 

Collateral Reading.— Eggleston and Seelye's "Tecumseh," 151-155, 
207-210, 216-223, Roosevelt's "The Naval War of 1812," 82-92; 
283-289; Rhodes's " History of the United States," II., 30-37. 



THE WAR TO ITS CLOSE 



-^17 



CHAPTER XXXVI 



THE WAR TO ITS CLOSE 



Harrison with the Army of the Northwest. — The news of 
Hull's shameful surrender threw the people into a frenzy 
of anger, particularly in the West. They clamored loudly 
for the recapture of Detroit, and to that end General Win- 
chester, a Revolutionary officer, was appointed to command 
the Northwestern army. But the Kentuckians, who largely 
made up that army, refused to follow any one but Harrison, 
who had led them to victory at Tippecanoe. The President 




yielded and appointed 
Harrison to the com- 
mand. 

The River Raisin. — In January, 1813, while leading the 

advance of Harrison's army, Winchester went to the relief 

of Frenchtown, in Michigan, on the River Raisin. The town 

had been attacked by a force of English and Indians. As 

15— Egg. Hist. 



238 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF l8l2 

Winchester advanced, Colonel Proctor, of the British army, 
crossed the Detroit River on the ice, attacked the Ameri- 
cans with a much stronger force and overcame them, Win- 
chester was made prisoner, and surrendered his men. 
Proctor withdrew to his station at Maiden with six hundred 
prisoners, leaving the wounded Americans to be massa- 
cred by the Indians, though he had promised to protect 
them. 

Fort Meigs and Fort Stephenson. — In May, and again in 
July, Proctor with his British force laid siege to Fort Meigs, 
General Harrison's advanced post, but on both occasions 
he was beaten and forced to retire. He then made an at- 
tempt on Fort Stephenson, a weak stockade, with a single 
cannon to defend it. Major Croghan, a young Kentucky 
officer, made a brilliant defense, and repulsed a British force 
many times outnumbering his own. 

The Invasion of Canada. — In order to invade Canada suc- 
cessfully the Americans must first secure control of the 
Great Lakes. Captain Isaac Chauncey had been set to do 
this. He went in person in August, 1812, to Lake Ontario, 
where the British were strongest. By capture and purchase 
he soon gathered together a little fleet ready for use, while 
better vessels were building. By the spring of 181 3 he was 
so far in control of the lake that he could aid and protect 
a mihtary expedition against the town of York, now known 
as Toronto. The town was captured, and the house in 
which the Parliament met was burned. In the next month 
the Americans attacked Fort George, at the mouth of the 
Niagara River, and after a sharp conflict the British with- 
drew and blew up the fort. They also abandoned the 
other forts on the Niagara frontier. 

Perry's Victory. — In March, 1813, Oliver Hazard Perry, 
a captain in the navy, was sent to Presque Isle, now Erie, 
with orders to form a fleet and secure control of Lake Erie. 
By September Perry had built five vessels, and secured four 
others by capture and by purchase. On the loth of Septem- 
ber Perry's fleet came within sight of Captain Barclay's little 



THE WAR TO ITS CLOSE 



239 



British squadron of six vessels in the western part of the 
lake. The British brought all their guns to bear on the 
flagship " Lawrence," and she was soon battered beyond all 
use. Then Perry seized his flag, which bore the motto 
*' Don't give up the ship," and springing into a rowboat 
hurried to the " Niagara " under a galling fire from the 
enemy. Gaining the " Niagara's " deck he continued the 
fight with such vigor that he carried the " Niagara " 




Perry's victory on Lake Erie 



through the British line, and in fifteen minutes Captain 
Barclay was forced to strike his colors. 

It was in the flush of victory that Perry wrote his famous 
dispatch to General Harrison : " We have met the enemy, 
and they are ours — two ships, two brigs, one schooner and 
one sloop." 

Detroit and the Battle of the Thames. — When news came 
of Perry's victory, Harrison set out for his headquarters 
on the margin of the lake. His whole army assembled there 
and Perry's ships carried them to a point near Maiden. On 
reaching the fort, Harrison found it in ruins. Proctor had 
set fire to it and retreated in deadly terror of the vengeance 



240 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 

of the Kentuckians, whose watchword was " Remember the 
River Raisin." 

Harrison followed Proctor to Sandwich opposite Detroit, 
only to find that place also abandoned. He sent a brigade 
across the river to take possession of Detroit. Continu- 
ing the pursuit of Proctor's army Harrison overtook it on 
the River Thames, October 5, 181 3. The British were 
drawn up under cover of a wood. A furious charge was 
made upon them, headed by Colonel Richard Johnson's 
regiment of mounted Kentuckians. These men were ac- 
customed to ride full tilt through the forest, carrying their 
rifles in their hands. Before their impetuous dash the Brit- 
ish line gave way, and when the Kentuckians reached their 
rear they wheeled about to the right and left, pouring a 
deadly fire into the broken lines. The British threw down 
their arms, and the whole force surrendered. In this battle 
Tecumseh, who had become an officer in the British army, 
was slain. Proctor escaped. 

The Campaign of 1814.^ — In 1814 the army on the Niagara 
frontier was placed under command of General Jacob 
Brown, with Winfield Scott, Edmond P. Gains and E. W. 
Ripley commanding brigades. The early part of the year 
was spent in drilling the men, and in July the army was put 
in motion. It took Fort Erie without a blow, and on the 
5th the British were driven from a well chosen position on 
the Chippewa River. Three weeks later the British having 
been reenforced returned toward their former position and 
were met at Lundys Lane on July 25, by General Scott 
with the advance forces. General Brown arrived soon after 
dark with the main army and a battle followed which lasted 
until midnight. The Americans were victorious in this 
battle, but they were so badly outnumbered by the British 
that they retired the next day to Fort Erie. The British 
tried to recover Fort Erie but were unable to do so either 
by assault or by siege, though it was afterwards abandoned 
by the Americans. 

The Creek War. — In the Autumn of 1812 Tecumseh had 



THE WAR TO ITS CLOSE 



241 



visited the southern tribes of Indians, urging them to war 
against the whites and had won many of them by his elo- 
quence. After his depar- 
ture a comet appeared, and 
some of the Creek Indians 
along the Alabama took it 
for a message from Te- 




Seat of the Creek War 



cumseh. Soon afterwards 

there came the shock of an 

earthquake which in the 

minds of the savages was 

also a threat from Tecum- 

seh. The British, through 

the Spanish at Pensacola, 

Florida, furnished these Indians with arms, and very soon 

afterwards they made war. The white people from the 

surrounding country fled to Fort Mimms, not far from 

Mobile, and were there attacked and massacred in August, 

1813, by the hostile Creeks who were led by Wetherford, 

or " Red Eagle." Four hundred Americans, men, women, 

and children, were slain. 

The whites at once entered upon a war of extermination 
against the hostile Creeks, and many of the Indians were 
killed by the volunteer forces sent into their territory. 
General Andrew Jackson conducted this war on the Ameri- 
can side, and in March, 1814, he attacked and carried a 
strongly fortified and stoutly defended position held by the 
Creeks at the Horse Shoe Bend on the Tallapoosa River. 
Here Jackson won a complete and final victory, and for- 
ever broke the power of Wetherford and his Creeks. He 
made a treaty by which the Indians gave the greater part of 
their territory to the United States. 

The Capture of Washington and the Siege of Baltimore. 
— The fall of Napoleon, and the end of the long war with 
France, enabled England to put new vigor into her war 
with the United States. She increased her naval force, 
and declared our whole coast blockaded. Raids were made 



242 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF i8l2 

at different points in New England. In August, 1814, 
General Ross, with four thousand five hundred men, landed 
in Maryland, and overthrew the American force at Bladens- 
burg, near Washington, where President Madison and his 
cabinet were on the field in person. When the militia re- 
treated in disorder, the British advanced to Washington, 
and set fire to the Capitol, the " White House," and other 
public buildings, in retaliation for the burning of York, 
Canada, the year before. The next day they withdrew 
unmolested. 

A month later Ross made an attempt to capture Balti- 
more. He was vigorously resisted and finally beaten off. 
Fort McHenry, which guarded the city, was furiously bom- 
barded by the British fleet for a whole day and night, but it 
held out to the last, and the British fleet withdrew from 
Chesapeake Bay. It was during this bombardment that our 
patriotic song, " The Star Spangled Banner," was written. 
Francis S. Key, the author of the poem, had been sent to the 
fleet to secure the release of some prisoners, and the Brit- 
ish detained him there till the bombardment was ended. 
As he sat there a temporary prisoner, on board an enemy's 
vessel, watching a bombardment on which the fate of Balti- 
more and perhaps of the whole nation depended, he was 
moved to write the stirring lines of that song. 

Macdonough's Victory — Jackson at Pensacola. — In Sep- 
tember, 1814, a British army of twelve thousand men, sup- 
ported by a strong fleet of fighting ships on Lake Cham- 
plain, mvaded New York from Canada. Commodore Mac- 
donough, in command of a little fleet of American ships, 
anchored at Plattsburg to await the coming of the enemy. 
When they came a desperate combat occurred (September 
11) and at the end of two hours and a half the last of the 
British ships had surrendered. The land forces had mean- 
while made some show of attacking Plattsburg, but seeing 
their fleet completely beaten they retreated in confusion. 

A month before this (August, 1814) a British force landed 
at Pensacola, Florida, and fortified themselves there. In 



THE WAR TO ITS CLOSE 



243 



November, General Jackson* marched from Mobile, at- 
tacked the British at Pensacola, carried the place, and drove 
the enemy out of the fort. He then withdrew, leaving the 
Spanish authorities in possession of the town. 

Battle of New Orleans. — The object of the British in raid- 
ing the New England coast, and attacking Washington 
and Baltimore, was largely to intimidate the Americans, 
and hold their attention while preparations were making 



""1 




Battle of New Orleans 



for an invasion of Louisiana, and the capture of New Or- 
leans, which would give the British control of the Missis- 
sippi. In November, 1814. fifty ships sailed from Jamaica 
for New Orleans, carrying an army of twelve thousand 
English veterans, under General Pakenham. 

But Jackson, too, was on his way to New Orleans. 
Placing the city under military law, the great backwoods 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



244 fROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF i8l2 

general set to work to create an army out of such materials 
as he could find. He formed companies of free colored 
men, and other companies of convicts taken from the pris- 
ons, and enlisted all the merchants and their clerks who 
were fit to fight. He drilled and disciplined these, and 
soon had about five thousand men, including three hundred 
Tennessee volunteers under Coffee, who had fought des- 
perately in the Creek war. He erected batteries, and armed 
a little ship in the river for use as a gunboat. 

On December 23 half the British army appeared a few 
miles below New Orleans, and Jackson, when he heard 
the ncM^s, cried : " We'll fight them to-night." After dark 
Jackson assailed them with his motley little force, throwing 
them into confusion, and compelling them to wait for re- 
enforcements before attempting to march into the city as 
they had expected to do on the next morning. On the 8th 
of January, 181 5, the whole British army stormed Jack- 
son's works. They were repulsed with great slaughter, and 
Pakenham was killed. 

Treaty of Peace. — Two weeks before this battle was fought 
a treaty of peace between the United States and Great 
Britain had been signed at Ghent, in Europe, but news 
traveled so slowly in those days that it was not until Feb- 
ruary that tidings of this treaty reached New York. News 
of Jackson's brilliant victory had spread all over the coun- 
try a week before. The treaty of peace gave the United 
States none of those things for which the war had been 
fought. But the struggle had won for this country such a 
position among nations that Great Britain thereafter re- 
spected the rights of Americans. 

The Hartford Convention, — The Federalists had from the 
first opposed the war with England, and the last strong- 
hold of that party was in the New England States. The 
people there were divided in opinion regarding the war. 
They feared that peace could never be made except on terms 
unfavorable to New England interests. In October, 1814, 
a convention was held at Hartford, Conneticut, for the pur- 




THE WAR TO ITS CLOSE 245 

pose of uniting the New England States, and making certain 
demands on the National government. The session was 
secret, but it was thought that the Fed- 
eralists were planning to withdraw the 
New England States from the Union. 
This belief caused great anger in other 
parts of the country. 

The Dey of Algiers. — The Dey of Al- 
giers took advantage of the withdrawal 
of the United States cruisers from the 
Mediterranean during this struggle to 
declare war against us. An American 
vessel was captured by the pirates, and 

her crew sent into slavery. When ai • ■ . 

_ 1 1 ^1 Algerian pirate 

our war with England was ended, the 

United States sent a squadron of eleven vessels, commanded 
by Decatur, to deal with the piratical state. When Deca- 
tur's ships appeared before Algiers the Dey fell into a 
fright, and gave up his prisoners and his claim to the pay- 
ment of tribute. 



Summary. — i. After Hull's surrender General Harrison was sent to 
command the Army of the Northwest. A part of his force was defeated, 
and the wounded left to be massacred by the Indians on the River 
Raisin. 

2. In 1813 the British twice besieged Fort Meigs, but were forced to 
retire. An American force crossed Lake Ontario, took the town of 
York, burned the Parliament building there, and forced the British to 
abandon all their posts along the Niagara. 

3. In September, 1813, Captain Perry's fleet captured the British 
squadron near Sandusky, Ohio. This enabled Harrison's army to cross 
into Canada, where, after recovering Detroit, it captured the whole 
British army at the battle of the Thames, October, 1813. 

4. In 1812 the Indians in Alabama and Georgia had been stirred up 
by the chief Tecumseh and armed by the British. They made war upon 
the Americans. General Andrew Jackson completely routed them. 

5. In the summer of 1814 General Brown took Fort Erie, drove the 
British from the Chippewa River, and won the fierce battle of Lundys 
Lane. 



246 FROM THE REVOLUTION THROUGH THE WAR OF 1812 

6. In August, 1814, General Ross landed in Maryland, entered Wash- 
ington and set fire to the public buildings there. A month later he 
besieged Baltimore, but was stoutly resisted and finally beaten off. 

7. In September, 1814, Commodore Macdonough captured the whole 
of the British squadron on Lake Champlam, 

8. The British landed an army below New Orleans on December 23. 
Jackson attacked and threw them into confusion, thus securing time 
in which to fortify. On the 8th of January, 1815, the British assailed 
Jackson's little army, but were terribly beaten. 

9. A treaty of peace had been signed two weeks before this battle, 
but neither side knew it. Although the subject was not mentioned in 
the treaty Great Britain let our ships alone thereafter. 

10. During this war with England the Dey of Algiers again declared 
war upon us. As soon as peace was made with Great Britain an 
American fleet was sent to bring the Dey to terms. It did so quickly. 

Collateral Reading. — Roosevelt's "The Naval War of 1812," 262- 
271, 387-309; Parton's " Life of Andrew Jackson," II., 188-209; G. C. 
Eggleston's " Red Eagle," 136-301. 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 



CHAPTER XXXVII 

THE ERA OF GOOD FEELING 

Monroe's Election. — The Republicans had gained great 
favor with the people during the war of 1812, which was 
called " the second war for 
independence," and in the 
presidential election of 1816 
the Republican candidate, 
James Monroe,* of Virginia, 
was chosen with only thirty- 
four electoral votes against 
him. Monroe had been one 
of the leaders of the Repub- 
licans from the beginning, 
and was Secretary of State 
under Madison. He was 
very popular, and at the end 
of his first term was re- 
elected with only one elec- 
toral vote against him. The 
time of his administration was called " The era of good 
feeling." The Federal party was almost extinct, as a result 
of its opposition to the war. 

The Seminole War and the Acquisition of Florida. — The 
Seminole Indians in Florida had long been the enemies of 
the Americans. Encouraged by the Spanish and British, 
after the war of 1812 had ended, they continued to ravage 
the frontiers of Georgia and Alabama. They were assisted 

* For biography, see Appendix. 
247 




James Monroe 



248 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

in this by runaway negroes, to whom a British captain had 
given a strong fort heavily armed and suppHed with a great 
quantity of powder. These negroes were especially active 
in war upon the Americans, and in 18 16 the Spanish Gov- 
ernor at Pensacola was asked to turn them out of their fort. 
As he did not do this an American force assailed the strong- 
hold. A hot shot fell into the powder magazine, which 
blew up and killed two hundred and seventy negroes, leav- 
ing only thirty to escape. 

The ravages continuing. General Jackson was sent to sup- 
press the Indians. Without authority from the government 
he marched into the Spanish territory, captured some towns, 
hanged two British subjects, and then took Pensacola itself. 
Our government afterwards gave up the town to the Span- 
ish to whom it belonged, and in 1819 Spain made a treaty 
defining our southwestern boundary (see maps, pp. 220, 
256-7) and selling all of Florida to the United States for five 
million dollars. The treaty was ratified in 1821, and Gen- 
eral Jackson took possession of Florida as its governor. 

The Monroe Doctrine. — Mexico and the Spanish colonies 
in South America, one after another, threw off the authority 
of Spain, and were recognized as independent republics by 
the United States. The European powers were afraid of 
the growth of republican ideas and opposed to the setting 
up of republics anywhere. In 181 5 Russia, Austria and 
Prussia formed what was called the Holy Alliance to sup- 
press all .repubhcan movements in Europe, In 1823 this 
Holy Alliance decided to extend its operations to America, 
and help Spain recover her lost colonies. In this they 
sought England's help. The British government refused, 
and offered to join the United States in protecting the little 
republics. 

By way of giving notice of our attitude in this matter, 
Monroe sent a message to Congress (December 2, 1823) in 
which he reminded Europe that this country in no way in- 
terfered with affairs in the Old World, and set forth what 
has ever since been known as the Monroe Doctrine. The 



THE ERA OF GOOD FEELING 



249 



message declared " That the American continents, by the 
free and independent condition which they have assumed 
and maintained are henceforth not to be considered as sub- 
jects for future colonization by any European powers." It 
further gave notice to the European powers " That we 
should consider any attempt on their part to extend their 
system to any portion of this hemisphere as dangerous to 
our peace and safety." Referring to the Spanish-American 
republics the message went on to declare that the United 
States " Could not view any interposition for the purpose 
of oppressing them or controlling in any other manner 
their destiny by any European power in any other light 
than as the manifestation of an unfriendly disposition to- 
ward the United States." This was a Declaration of In- 
dependence for all America, and our government has ever 
since maintained the principle. 

The Peopling of the West. — The Census. — During the hard 
times that accompanied and followed the War of 181 2-1 5, a 
great emigration from the more easterly States had poured 
into the Mississippi valley, rapidly filling up the fertile re- 
gions west of the 
Appalachian 
Mountains. The 
census of 1810 
showed a popula- 
tion of 7,240,000 in 
the whole country, 
and the number of 
people had in- 
creased by 1 819 to 
about 9,000,000. 
The West had 
grown faster than the country as a whole had done, and 
new States had been rapidly created in that quarter. Louis- 
iana was admitted to the Union April 30. 1812; Indiana, 
December 11, 1816; Mississippi, December 10, 1817; Illi- 
nois, December 3, 1818; and Alabama, December 14, 1819. 




iDols indicate regions se 
Jbetween 1790 and 1810 



Settled area in 1810 



250 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 



Then for the first time a Territory (Missouri) lying wholly 
west of the great river and in the latitude of the Northwest 
Territory, asked admission as a State, and for the first time 
the question of slavery presented itself to the country in 
troublesome form. 

The Missouri Compromise. ^During the early years after 
the Constitution was adopted all the States north of Mary- 
land and Delaware, where slave labor was not profitable, 
had gradually abolished slavery. In the South slavery had 
become very profitable. 

Near the end of the eighteenth century Eli Whitney * had 

invented a machine called 
the cotton gin. Before 
that time it had not been 
profitable to raise cotton, 
because of the difficulty 
of removing the seeds. 
This was so great that 
a person working at it 
could not remove the 
seeds from more than a 
pound or so of cotton in 
a day. Eli Whitney's ma- 
chine enabled a man to 
remove them from a 
thousand or two thou- 
sand pounds in a day, 
and cotton became the 
great staple crop of all the far southern States. 

Negro slaves were the best laborers in the cotton field, 
and so slavery came to be a valuable labor system there. 
The older States in that region retained it, and their people 
rapidly settled the southern Territories west of them, open- 
ing cotton plantations there, to be cultivated by their ne- 
groes. Every new State formed out of territory south of 
the Ohio River came into the Union with slavery estab- 

• For biography, see Appendix. 




Model of cotton gin 



THE ERA OF GOOD FEELING 25 1 

lished, while under the ordinance of 1787 every State formed 
oiitof the territory northwest of the Ohio prohibited slavery. 

Thus, in 181 9, there were eleven free States and eleven in 
which slavery existed. The people of the two sections had 
come to have different interests, and to wish for dift'erent 
national laws. Each section wished to prevent the other 
from getting too much power. 

In 1819 Maine asked admission as a State, and at the same 
time the Territory of Missouri applied for a like privilege. 
There were slaves held in the Missouri Territorv. and the 
people there wished their State to come into the Union with 
a constitution permitting slavery. Many people in the 
North were unwilling to have slavery established in a State 
so far north, or to have it extended into any part of the 
region west of the Mississippi. But the Southern members 
of Congress refused to admit Maine as a free State unless 
the Northern members should allow Missouri to come in 
with slavery. 

After much discussion the matter was settled for the time 
by what is known as the Missouri Compromise, a measure 
supported, though not devised by Henry Clay.* This com- 
promise provided that Missouri should be admitted with 
slavery, but that slavery should be forever prohibited in all 
the rest of the Louisiana purchase lying north of latitude 
36° 30', the southern line of Missouri (see map, pp. 256-7). 
As Texas then belonged to Mexico, the United States 
owned very little territory south of the compromise line and 
west of the Mississippi River. The angry discussion of this 
matter had aroused a good deal of hostility between the 
people of the two sections, and from that time until the 
Civil War the slavery question was a constant source of 
trouble. 

Lafayette's Visit. — In 1824 Lafayette came to visit the 
country he had done so much to help in its struggle for inde- 
pendence. He visited every State and all the important 
cities, and was received everywhere with enthusiasm. Con- 

• For biography, see Appendix. 



252 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 




A reception to Lafayette 

gress voted him two hundred thousand dollars and a town- 
ship of land, or twenty-three thousand acres, in return for 
his services in the Revolutionary War. He laid the corner- 
stone of Bunker Hill Monument. 

New Tariff Laws. — When the first tariff act was passed, in 
1789, there was very little manufacturing in this country. 
The duties under that tarifif were laid upon imports chiefly 
for the purpose of raising money for the government. 
When the war of 1812 came the tarifif duties were doubled 
by way of meeting the cost of the war. All of these early 
tariffs were mainly for revenue, though in all of them some 
provision was made for protecting and developing American 
manufactures. 

The Embargo of 1807 and the Non-intercourse Act had 
shut out British goods, and for lack of them Americans had 
begun manufacturing many things which had not been made 



THE ERA OF GOOD FEELING 



253 



in this country before. When the foreign trade was opened 
again by the ending of the war, the British manufacturers 
sent over large quantities of goods, and sold them so cheap 
that American manufacturers were alarmed lest their busi- 
ness should be ruined by competition. It cost more to 
manufacture goods in America than in England where labor 
was much cheaper. The manufacturers, therefore, desired 
further tariff protection, and in 1816 a new law was passed 
which raised the duty on cotton cloth, woolen goods and 
articles made of iron. This was the first tariff act in which 
the principle of protection was made prominent. 

The Tariff of 1824. — Another tariff act was passed in 1824. 
It increased the duties already in force, and taxed many 
articles for the express purpose of protecting American 
manufacturers against their foreign rivals. This tariff was 
made almost wholly for the sake of protection, but it 
promised to yield more revenue than the government 
needed. Henry Clay and others, therefore, proposed that 
the extra money should be used to build roads, dig canals 
and make other " internal improvements." Henry Clay 
called this policy of impos- 
ing high duties for the pro- 
tection of home manufac- 
turers, and making roads 
and the like at the expense 
of the national government, 
" the American System." 

The Election of 1824. — - 
There was now no foreign 
question to disturb the 
country, and the Missouri 
Compromise had quieted 
the slavery dispute for a 
time, at least. There were 
four presidential candidates 
in 1824, all of them Repub- 
licans. They were Craw- 

16 — Egg. Hist. 




John Quincy Adams 



254 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

ford, John Quincy Adams, Clay and Jackson. The Federal 
party was dead. 

Jackson got more electoral votes than any other candi- 
date but not a majority of all. There was, therefore, no 
election by the- people, and the choice of a president fell to 
the House of Representatives, which elected John Quincy 
Adams.* John C. Calhoun * was chosen Vice President by 
the electoral vote. 

New Political Parties.' — Soon after Adams became Presi- 
dent the old Democratic-Republican party was divided into 
two parties. At first these were called " Adams men," and 
" Jackson men," but the Adams men took the name of Na- 
tional Republicans, and the Jackson men came to be called 
Democrats. The National Republican party included many 
of the old Federalists, and it wished, as the Federalists had 
done, to strengthen the central government. It favored 
Clay's policy of internal improvements, a protective tariff 
and a national bank. The Democrats opposed all of these 
measures. 

Population and the States. — The census of 1820 showed a 
total population of 9,630,000. Maine was admitted as a 
State, March 15. 1820, and Missouri, August 10, 1821, 
swelling the total number of States to twenty-four. 

Summary. — l. In 1816 James Monroe was elected President with 
little opposition, and in 1820 he was reelected with only one electoral 
vote against him. The Federal party was almost extinct, and nearly 
everybody was now a Republican. This period was called the " era of 
good feeling." 

2. The Seminole Indians continued to make war on the whites in 
Alabama and Georgia. As the Spanish authorities in Florida would 
do nothing to suppress them and their runaway negro allies, General 
Jackson was sent to rid the border of this annoyance. He marched 
into Florida, seiz-ed Pensacola and compelled a peace. In 1819 Spain 
sold Florida to the United States. 

3. President Monroe in 1823 sent a message to Congress in which he 
gave notice that European nations must not interfere with affairs on 
this side of the ocean. 

• For biography, see Appendix. 



ROADS, CANALS, AND RAILROADS 255 

4. When Missouri was ready to come into the Union as a State a 
great quarrel arose over the question whether slavery should be per- 
mitted in that State. After long discussion the question was settled by 
the Missouri Compromise (1820). 

5. In 1824 Lafayette visited this country and was welcomed by the 
government and the people. 

6. During Monroe's administration the tariff was greatly increased, 
and Clay urged the policy of constructing roads and canals at the ex- 
pense of the general government. 

7. In the election of 1824 there was no Federal candidate, but four 
Republicans were voted for, no one of whom got a majority of the elec- 
toral votes. The House of Representatives chose John Quincy Adams 
to be President. 

Collateral Reading. — Schouler's " History of the United States," IIL, 
283-289; Rhodes's " History of the United States," II., 30-37. 



CHAPTER XXXVIII 

ROADS, CANALS, AND RAILROADS 

Land Travel before the Railroad. — The Indian trail was 
the only road through the forest in the early days of settle- 
ment, and travelers went about on foot. Then came the 
saddle horse and pack horse, but the roads were rough and 
narrow tracks, winding among trees which were " blazed " 
to mark the way. The trader carried his wares in canoes 
and shallow boats. Gradually roads were made and freight 
was carried in large covered wagons. As the Revolutionary 
period drew near, public stage wagons were introduced. 
There, were no bridges over the large streams, and stage 
passengers had to be carried over in boats. 

The Cumberland Road. — The rapid settlement of the Ohio 
Valley and the region west of the Alleghanies made neces- 
sary the improvement of means of communication with the 
East. When Ohio came into the Union in 1803 it was 
agreed that a part of the money which the sale of govern- 
ment lands in that State should bring should be used in the 
building of a wagon road to connect the Ohio River with 



" 


iA^ 


\° 


i Ij^ d 


V 


vj^" i! 


1-.^ 


f^_ujrlu 




THE UMTED STATES 

in 1824 



in 1824 

SCALE OF MILES 
Too ^^^ "'^ 



258 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 



the Atlantic coast. Plans for this road were formed in 
1806, and the work was soon begun. The road began at 
Cumberland, in Maryland, and followed very nearly the 
route which Braddock had marched in 1755. This '' Cum- 
berland road " was thrown open to the pubHc in 1818. 

At the end of every twelve miles the stage horses were 
changed and wagoners got their meals at taverns. In the 
mountains the taverns or " wagon stands " were some- 
times only a mile apart. In these a grate which would hold 
six bushels of coal was used to keep the wagoners warm in 
winter. The teams were usually of six horses. That part 
of this highway which lay west of Wheeling was commonl)^ 
called the national road. It was intended to extend it to the 




SCALE OF MILES \ 



_l I I l__l 



The Cumberland road 

western limit of the settlements, but the coming of railroads 
rendered this unnecessary, and in 1831 the great thorough- 
fare was handed over by Congress to the care of the States 
through which it passed. 

The Erie Canal. — Another important avenue of trade and 
travel which preceded the railroad was the Erie Canal. De 
Witt Clinton, Governor of New York, was determined to 
connect the Hudson River with the great lakes by a water- 
way. On the 4th of July, 181 7, work was begun on the 
canal which was to accomplish this, and it was continued 
without interruption until it was completed. This canal 
was three hundred and sixty-three miles in length. On 
October 26, 1825, the water of Lake Erie was let into the 
great ditch at Bufifalo and a long procession of canal boats 
started for Albany, where they arrived on November 2. 



ROADS, CANALS, AND RAILROADS 



259 



The boats were then towed down the Hudson to Sandy 
Hook, and there Governor Clinton, whose boat, the " Sen- 
eca Chief," headed the procession, poured a keg of water 
from Lake Erie into the Atlantic Ocean. 

This canal was intended to make New York city Greater 




t.y.yrii,4l, laOO, bg C. Klaihiei 



Passenger canal boat 



than Philadelphia, and it accomplished that purpose. It 
brought the products of the West to the sea, and carried 
goods from the East to the West at a cost greatly less than 
ever before. And with the connecting canals and natural 
waterways farther west, it has ever since kept down the cost 
of freight carriage. It also quickened travel at first. A 
passage of seven days between New York and Buffalo 
seemed then something wonderful. But only five years 
were to go by before another device for swift travel was to 
outdo all that had gone before. 

The Railroad. — The first railroads in this country had 
wooden rails, and the cars on them were drawn by horses. 
They were built to carry coal a few miles from mines to the 
nearest river or canal. 

The first railroad in this country which was intended to 
carry freight and passengers was the Baltimore and Ohio 
line. It was planned to run from Baltimore to Wheeling. 
The first thirteen miles of it were completed in 1830, but 
the cars were drawn by horses. Peter Cooper* built the first 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



26o 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 




Early locomotive 



locomotive used on that railroad in 1830. The first railroad 
in America that had as much as a hundred miles of track 
was the line from Charleston, South Carolina, to Hamburg, 
and on that railroad the first train was drawn by a loco- 
motive at Christmas, 1830. 

After that the extension and improvement of railroads 

was very slow for a time, but con- 
stant. It was not until after the 
Civil War that air brakes, im- 
proved couplings, safety plat- 
forms, steel rails fastened together 
at the ends, and other devices to 
make travel safe were introduced. 
Until the middle of the nineteenth 
century there were no such things as through trains over 
long distances. Every railroad was independent of every 
other. Each covered a comparatively short space, and at 
the end of each the passenger had to change cars, and often 
to wait two or three hours, even in the middle of the night. 
In going from New York to Cincinnati or Chicago or St. 
Louis, or even to Richmond, the traveler must change cars 
four, five, or six times, making 
long omnibus journeys from one 
railroad to another. There were 
no sleeping cars, no chair cars, no 
dining cars. 

All this seems well-nigh incred- 
ible in our day, when everybody 
is familiar with through express 
trains that whirl passengers across 
the continent at from forty to sixty 




Early car 



miles an hour in 
luxurious sleeping, drawing-room, and dining cars, with 
every comfort, including electric lights, libraries, bath- 
rooms, and barber shops. 

We have now in the United States over two hundred 
thousand miles of railroads, or more than enough to girdle 
the earth at the equator eight times. We have more miles 



ROADS, CANALS, AND RAILROADS 



261 




EAILKOADS 

OF THE 

ED STAT 



Railroads, 1830, and 1903 

of railroad than all Europe combined, and nearly as many 
as all the world outside our country. 

Summary. — i. Wagon roads succeeded the Indian trails as a means 
of travel in America. These were gradually improved and extended. 

2. In 1806 the national road, from Cumberland, Maryland, to the 
Ohio River and the West, was begun. It was opened to the public in 
1818. 

3. The Erie Canal was begun in 1817 and completed in 1825. 

4. In the early part of the nineteenth century railroads with wooden 
rails were used in hauling coal from the mines and rock from quarries 
by means of horses. 

5. In 1830 a short road running west from Baltimore was opened 
ior freight and passengers, horses pulling the trains. Later in the same 
year the first steam locomotive built in America was used on a railroad 
in South Carolina. There are now over 200,000 miles of railroad in 
the United States. 

Collateral Readings. — Adams's " Railroads: Their Origin and Prob- 
lems," 39-50; McMaster's " History of the People of the United States," 
IV., 407-419. 



262 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 



CHAPTER XXXIX 



JACKSON S ADMINISTRATION 



The Election of Andrew Jackson. — The election of 1828 
was a bitter personal contest between the candidates, An- 
drew Jackson and John 
Qnincy Adams. Though 
a man of high character, 
Adams was not personally- 
popular. While Jackson, as 
the hero of New Orleans, 
was in high favor. Besides 
this the plain people, espe- 
cially in the West and 
South, were enthusiastic for 
him because he was one of 
themselves. He was elected 
by one hundred and sev- 
enty-eight electoral votes 
to only eighty-three for 
Adams. 

The Spoils System. — When 
he became President, Jack- 
son acted upon the principle that " to the victors belong 
the spoils." He turned out of office those who were op- 
posed to him in politics, and put his own friends in their 
places. He was the first President who used the public 
offices in this way as rewards for political service. During 
his administration the Postmaster-General became a mem- 
ber of the Cabinet. 

The National Bank. — The charter of the first national bank, 
established in 1791, expired in 1 811. As there was much 
opposition to the idea of a national bank, a new charter 
was refused. The war of 1812 left the country so much 
embarrassed for money that the State banks could not 




Andrew Jackson 



JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION 263 

redeem their bills in gold or silver, and so, in 1816, a new 
national bank was chartered for twenty years. When 
prosperity returned the people grew very jealous of the 
national bank, whose branches in various cities took busi- 
ness away from the State banks. A great fear arose, also, 
that a national bank, controlling the money affairs of the 
country, might make itself dangerous in politics. 

The charter of the bank would not expire until 1836; 
but in 1832 its friends, having a majority in Congress, 
thought it a good time to grant it a new charter. Congress 
passed a bill to that effect, but Jackson vetoed it. 

The Tariff of 1828. — A new tariff bill was passed in 1828. 
It imposed much higher protective duties than had been 
known before in this country, and these were so arranged 
that the measure satisfied nobody. John C. Calhoun, the 
Vice President, nicknamed it " The Tariff of Abomina- 
tions." The South had hardly any manufacturies, and the 
southern people wanted to buy foreign goods without pay- 
ing high duties on them. The South, therefore, felt itself 
wronged and injured by a tariff which forced the people 
of that region to pay high prices for their goods, and gave 
them no benefit in return. This seemed to them the same 
thing as requiring them to pay a tribute to the manufac- 
turers of the Middle and Eastern States. This tariff did not 
satisfy even the people of the manufacturing States, because 
in trying to please all who asked for protection this law in- 
jured many of them quite as much as it benefited them. 

Nullification. — Many of the features of this tariff were 
changed by a new law in 1832. But this new law still re- 
tained the very high protective duties of 1828. A State con- 
vention was held in South Carolina by which it was declared 
that the tariff as it stood was null and void in South Caro- 
lina, and that the duties imposed by it should not be charged 
on goods imported into that State after February i, 1833. 
This was nullification. It was an attempt on the part of a 
State to say that a national law should not be enforced within 
that State. 



264 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

Jackson was not in favor of a protective tariff, but he did 
not believe that the Union could hold together if any State 
could thus nullify its laws. He at once determined to com- 
pel South Carolina to submit to the law. He sent ships and 
soldiers to enforce the payment of duties. 

The Compromise Tariff. — In this crisis Henry Clay pro- 
posed and Congress accepted a compromise. A new bill 
was passed providing for a gradual reduction in the pro- 
tective duties, so that within ten years the highest of them 
should not exceed 20 per cent of the value of the goods 
taxed. This compromise settled the difficulty. 

Indian Affairs.^In 1832 occurred what is called the Black- 
hawk War. The Indian chief, Blackhawk, at the head of 
the Sacs and Foxes, crossed the Mississippi to reclaim the 
land east of that river, which these tribes had once owned. 
He was beaten in two battles, and the Indians gave up their 
claims. In the same yqar the chiefs of the Seminoles agreed 
to remove their tribe from the Southeastern States to lands 
west of the Mississippi, but the treaty was not ratified for 
two years, and then some of the chiefs refused to obey it. 
The opposition was led by a chief named Osceola, and seven 
years of bitter war ensued. At the end of it those Seminoles 
who survived were removed to the Indian Territory. The 
Creeks, Choctaws, Chickasaws, and other tribes had already 
removed to that Territory, where lands had been given to 
them in exchange for those they had given up in Alabama, 
Georgia, Mississippi, and Tennessee. The Indian Territory — 
which comprised most of the area now included in Okla- 
homa, Kansas, and Nebraska — was set apart for the Indians, 
under a policy which planned to settle all the tribes there. 
It was thought that that region was too remote ever to be 
wanted for white settlement, and that the removal of the 
Indians to it would settle the Indian question once for all. 

Jackson Reelected. — In 1832 Henry Clay was the candi- 
date of the National Republicans, and Andrew Jackson of 
the Democrats. A third party called the Antimasons 
nominated William Wirt, of Virginia, as their candidate. 



Jackson's administration 265 

This party grew out of the fact that in 1826 a tailor named 
William Morgan in western New York had written a book 
professing to reveal the secrets of the freemasons. Mor- 
gan disappeared suddenly. Stories were told to the efifect 
that the masons had killed him and sunk his body in Lake 
Ontario. The affair created a great excitement, and started 
a political party which was strong enough to cast 70,000 
votes in 1829 and 'to carry Vermont in 1832 and Pennsyl- 
vania three years later. It was this party's purpose to keep 
freemasons out of public office on the ground that a free- 
mason was a man who had bound himself to obey the com- 
mands of a secret order, even though obedience should 
make him a law breaker. Jackson was reelected by a heavy 
majority. 

The Removal of the Deposits. — Jackson was determined to 
break down the national bank at once. Without consulting 
Congress, he ordered the Secretary of the Treasury not to 
deposit any more government money in the bank, but to 
place the nation's funds in State banks instead, and to draw 
upon the deposits in the national bank for all expenses of 
the government until those deposits should be exhausted. 
This order was issued in September, 1833. The national 
bank thereupon decided not to lend so much money as it 
had done before to merchants, manufacturers, and others. 
There were many business failures, and the country grew 
greatly excited. Some blamed the national bank, and some 
blamed the President. The National Republicans in 1834 
began to call themselves " Whigs," and tried to unite in one 
party all men who were opposed to Jackson, whom they 
nicknamed " King Andrew." 

The Government Revenue. — The high tariff and the sale 
of western lands yielded so much money that in 1835 ^^e 
government paid off the last of its debts and still had more 
money than it needed by about thirty-five million dollars a 
year. It was decided to get rid of the surplus money by 
distributing a large sum among the States. The money 
was not given outright to the States, but merely lent to 



266 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 



them, though it was understood that the government would 
never ask for its return. It has never done so. 

Wildcat Banks. — Little banks had sprung up every- 
where under various State laws. Some of them had 
capital and some had not. But all of them issued bank 
notes to be used as money, and speculators went on buying 
government land and paying for it in these notes. Such 
banks were called wildcat banks, and their notes wildcat 
money. When Jackson found that a large part of the money 
received for government lands was in bank notes of doubt- 
ful value he issued what was called " the specie circular." 

ordering govern- 
ment land agents 
to take nothing in 
payment for lands 
except gold and 
silver. 

New States and a 
New Census. — Dur- 
ing Jackson's ad- 
ministration only 
two States were 
admitted to the 



< 



) I I I 

Settled area in 1810 ^.'"^^ 

K- .-..;. iDots indicate regions settled \ 
i^^^^-^ between 1810 and 1830 ~- 




Settled area in 1830 



Union, Arkansas on June 15, 1836, and Michigan on Jan- 
uary 26, 1837. By the census of 1830 the population of the 
United States was found to be 12,870,000. Thus during 
the forty years since the first census was taken the country 
had multiplied its population by nearly three and a third. 

Summary.— I. Andrew Jackson was the first President who used 
public offices as rewards for political service. 

2. In 1832 Congress passed a bill to give the national bank a new 
charter for a long term of years. Jackson, who hated and feared the 
bank, vetoed the measure. 

3. The " Tariff of Abominations," with very high protective duties, 
was passed in 1828. Though considerably changed in 1832, it still 
displeased the South. South Carolina attempted to nullify it, but 

■Jackson promptly prepared to compel obedience. The matter was 
peaceably settled, however, by a compromise bill. 



VAN BUREN'S administration — HARRISON AND TYLER 267 

4. The Indian chief Blackhawk, in 1832, made war in the North- 
west. He was beaten in two battles. Two years later a war broke out 
with the Seminoles in Florida, which lasted seven years. The principal 
western and southern tribes were removed to the Indian Territory. 

5. In his second term Jackson determined to break down the national 
bank without waiting for its charter to expire, and deposited no more 
government money with it. The effect of this was to cause many busi- 
ness failures and much excitement. 

6. The tariff and land sales brought so much money into the national 
treasury that the government paid off its debts and distributed a large 
surplus among the States as a loan. 

7. Little banks sprang up all over the country, issuing notes for use 
as money. Many of these notes were worthless or nearly so, but 
speculators used them in buying government land. Jackson stopped 
this by ordering the land agents to accept nothing but gold and silver 
in payment. 

Collateral Reading. — Schouler's " History of the United States," III., 
451-453; 455-459; McMaster's " History of the People of the United 
States," v., 227-231. 

CHAPTER XL 



VAN BUREN S ADMINISTRATION ; HARRISON AND TYLER 



Martin Van Buren. — 

Jackson was so strong 
with his party that in 1836 
he was able to dictate the 
nomination of his succes- 
sor. He chose Martin Van 
Buren,* who was pledged 
in a general way to carry 
out Jackson's policy. Van 
Buren was elected. 

The Panic of 1837. — Dur- 
ing Jackson's time all sorts 
of enterprises were planned 
in the hope of great gain. 
Money was loosely lent 

* For biography, see Appendix. 




Martin Van Buren 



268 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

without sufficient security to corporations intending to 
build railroads, lay out towns, and the like. Speculation 
was wild, and danger was near. When the government 
money was removed from the national bank it was dis- 
tributed among State banks, who lent it freely to specula- 
tors. Next came the distribution of the surplus govern- 
ment money among the States. This money had been 
deposited in " pet banks." When it was wanted for dis- 
tribution among the States these banks had to call in their 
loans and pay back the money. Last came the " specie cir- 
cular," in which Jackson ordered the land agents to accept 
only gold and silver. In order to get the gold and silver 
with which to buy lands the speculators called on the banks 
to redeem their notes. Many of them could not do so. 
This led to trouble. Money became scarce, and many of the 
bank notes became nearly worthless. Prices fell, banks sus- 
pended payments, merchants failed, factories closed, and 
thousands of men were thrown out of employment. Even 
the government became embarrassed for want of money. 

A New National Debt. — When this condition occurred 
Van Buren called a special session of Congress in Septem- 
ber, 1837, and a bill was passed authorizing the Treasury 
Department to issue and sell interest-bearing notes for ten 
million dollars. This created a new national debt. 

An Independent Treasury. — At the same session of Con- 
gress what was called the " divorce bill " was introduced. 
It was so called because it divorced the government finances 
from the banking system of the country. It provided that 
the public money should not be deposited in any bank, but 
should be stored in vaults in the various cities in charge of 
receivers. There was great opposition to this, and the bill 
did not pass until 1840. The Whigs repealed it in the next 
year, and the Democrats reenacted it in 1846. 

The First Whig President. — In 1840 the Whigs nominated 
Harrison for President, and John Tyler,* of Virginia, a 
life-long Democrat, for Vice President. Van Buren was 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



VAN BUREN'S administration — HARRISON AND TYLER 269 



nominated by the Democrats, but he was blamed by the 
people for the panic of 1837 and the hard times that had 

followed it, and the country ^ _ 

desired a change. Harrison r> -^^ ^'^s^^'^v"" ^ ^ ^ -V-^r^q 
was called " the poor man's 
friend." He was a military 
hero, and a man of integ- 
rity. The Whigs adopted 
the log cabin as their em- 
blem because the Democrats 
had sneered at Harrison as 
a simple frontiersman. A 
log cabin was drawn on 
wheels in Whig processions, 
and pictured on badges and 
medals. Log cabin song 
books carried campaign 
songs all over the country, 




William Henry Harrison 



and after an exciting campaign Harrison was elected by a 

large majority. 

Tyler's Succession. — Harrison died a month after his inau- 
guration, and Vice President 
Tyler succeeded him. Tyler 
was a Democrat in his con- 
victions, and a Whig only in 
his opposition to the policy 
of Jackson and Van Buren. 
The Whigs had nominated 
him to secure Southern 
votes. As President he turned 
against them and vetoed a 
bill providing for a new na- 
tional bank. All the mem- 
bers of the Whig cabinet 
except Daniel Webster* 
promptly resigned. 

John Tyler * For biography, see Appendix. 




2/0 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

The Ashburton Treaty. — Webster retained his office of 
Secretary of State because he was engaged in negotiating 
a treaty of great importance with Great Britain, and desired 
to complete it. The boundary Hue between the north- 
eastern part of our country and Canada had never been 
settled. Much trouble arose from this. In 1842 Lord Ash- 
burton and Mr. Webster agreed upon a satisfactory settle- 
ment. Having carried this matter through, Webster 
resigned from the cabinet. 

The Republic of Texas. — The United States had claimed 
Texas as a part of Louisiana, but that claim had been given 
up in 1819 in the treaty with Spain for the purchase of Flor- 
ida. Texas thus became a part of the province of Mexico. 
When that province became a republic Texas formed one of 
its States. Americans from the Southern States settled in 
Texas, taking their slaves with them. They did not like the 
Mexican government, and in 1835 they rebelled. Led by 
General Sam Houston they drove the Mexican troops out, 
and Texas became an independent republic in 1836. The 
Americans there wanted their republic to become a State in 
the Union. The people of the Southern States favored this 
as it would increase slave territory, but the annexation was 
opposed by those who objected to slavery, and by many 
others who feared it might lead to a war with Mexico. 
Tyler made a treaty of annexation, but the Senate refused to 
ratify it. There the matter rested for a time, to come up 
later and give much trouble. 

The Dorr Rebellion. — In Rhode Island nobody was per- 
mitted to vote except land owners and their eldest sons. The 
people petitioned in vain for the privilege of sharing in their 
government, and at last, in 1841, some of them tried to get 
up a new government of their own. The people called the 
Free Sufifrage party elected a governor. State officers, and a 
legislature without any authority of law. The regular gov- 
ernment without bloodshed put down this rebellion, which 
had been led by Thomas W. Dorr. A Constitution was then 
adopted which extended the right of sufifrage. Dorr was 



VAN BUREN'S administration — HARRISON AND TYLER 2/1 

sentenced to imprisonment for life, but was released a year 
later. 

The Oregon Boundary Trouble. — The treaty made at the 
close of the Revolution defined the boundary between the 
United States and Canada no farther west than the Missis- 
sippi River. The Louisiana purchase carried our territory 
as far west as the Rocky Mountains, and, as we have seen 
(p. 221), the discovery of the Columbia River by Captain 
Gray, and the exploration of Lewis and Clark in 1804, gave 
this country a claim to Oregon. A few years later an 
American fur trading settlement was made at the mouth of 
the Columbia River by John Jacob Astor, and was called 
Astoria. This gave the United States a new claim on the 
ground of occupancy. But Great Britain also claimed the 
country, and the English and American fur traders both . 
occupied it for some years. 

In 1818 Great Britain and the United States made a treaty 
which marked out the boundary line between the United 
States and Canada from the Mississippi River to the Rocky 
Mountains along the forty-ninth parallel of latitude. 

It was agreed in the same treaty that the fur traders of 
both countries should go on occupying the Oregon country 
together for ten years more. But the treaty did not say 
what the northern boundary of Oregon should be. Spain 
and Russia had also claimed that region, but Spain in 1819 
accepted latitude 42° as her northern limit. Russia in 1825 
agreed upon 54° 40' north latitude as the boundary between 
her Pacific territory of Alaska and the Oregon country. 
This left the division of Oregon as a matter in dispute 
between the United States and Great Britain. 

As settlers began moving into the country the question of 
its boundaries became important. Great Britain wished to 
make the Columbia River the northern line, while many 
Americans insisted upon 54° 40' as the proper boundary. 
In the election of 1844 the Democrats raised the campaign 
cry of " Fifty-four forty or fight." The matter was settled 
by treaty in 1846, which divided the territory on the 49th 



2^2 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 



parallel, but gave Great Britain the whole of Vancouver 
Island. 

The Great Unpeopled West. — Fof thirty or forty years after 
the exploration of the Oregon country by Lewis and Clark 
(see p. 221), and of the region east of the Rocky Mountains 
by Lieutenant Pike (see p. 222), there was no movement 
of immigration into regions that are now the richest grain- 
growing parts of our country. There was still enough 
government land east of the Mississippi to satisfy the de- 
sires of hardy immigrants from the East who wished to 
make farm homes for themselves. 

Except in Missouri and the region south of that State, 
there were still no farming settlements of consequence any- 
where west of the great river as late as 1840. 

The Fur Trade. — But there was a harvest of wealth to be 
reaped there in other ways than by farming. The country 
abounded in fur-bearing animals, and daring men, who 
cared neither for danger nor for hard- 
ship, went into those wildernesses 
alone or in small parties in search of 
furs. Many of them were killed by 
the Indians; many starved to death 
amid the snows; many perished in 
other ways. But 
those who survived 
brought rich car- 
goes of furs to St. 
Louis and to Santa 
Fe, while John Ja- 
cob Astor's fur- 
trading posts in the 
Oregon country 
made him the rich- 
est man then in 
America. 

The Pathfinder.— 
Trapper at home But the great re- 




VAN BUREN'S administration — HARRISON AND TYLER 2/3 




Buffalo hunt 



gion west of the Mississippi, and especially the Rocky 
Mountain part of it, remained practically an unknown land. 
Its pathways were unmarked on maps, and not described 
in books, and its resources were unknown, until, in 1842, 
1843, ^^^ 1845 Lieutenant John C. Fremont* led three 
great government exploring expeditions across the western 
half of the continent, and won for himself the proud title of 
" The Pathfinder." The books, published by the govern- 
ment, in which he tokl the story of his marches, and set 
forth what he had found, were everywhere eagerly read, 
and they did much to stimulate emigration into the new 
Northwest. 

The Census. — By the census of 1840 the country had a 
population of 17,070,000.* On the last day of Tyler's term 
Florida was admitted to the Union as a State. 

Summary. — i. Martin Van Buren was elected President in 1836. 
2. In 1837 a panic occurred which greatly distressed the country. 
This panic led to the creation of a new national debt. 



17— Egg. Hist. 



* For biography, see Appendix. 



274 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 



3. The people blamed the Democrats for the panic and the hard 
times, and in 1840 the Whigs elected William Henry Harrison for 
President, and John Tyler for Vice President. Harrison lived only 
a month after becoming President, and Tyler quickly broke with the 
Whig party, vetoing a bill to establish a new national bank. 

4. A long-standing dispute with Great Britain concerning the north- 
eastern boundary (between Maine and Canada) was settled in 1842 by 
the Webster-Ashburton treaty. 

5. Texas having revolted from Mexico, became an independent 
republic in 1836. It asked to be admitted to the Union as a State. 
This was opposed by those people in the United States who objected to 
slavery and by many others who feared a war with Mexico. Tyler 
made a treaty agreeing to annexation, but the Senate rejected it. 

6. A little rebellion broke out in Rhode Island in 1841 called the Dorr 
rebellion. It was quickly suppressed without bloodshed, but it led to 
the adoption of a Constitution in that State extending the sufifrage. 

7. For a long time there was a dispute between Great Britain and 
the United States as to the northern boundary of Oregon. It was 
settled at last by treaty in 1846. 

Collateral Reading, — Andrews's " History of the United States," II., 
21-23. Rhodes's " History of the United States," I., 78-80. Andrews's 
" History of the United States," II., 30-33. 

CHAPTER XLI 

THE MEXICAN WAR 




James K. Polk 



The Election of 1844. — The 

question of annexing Texas 
was the leading issue in the 
r lection of 1844. The Demo- 
i-rats nominated James K. 
I 'oik,* who favored annexa- 
tion, and for Vice President 
( Icorge M. Dallas, who op- 
l>nsed it. Henry Clay was the 
\\'hig candidate. He tried to 
please both sides on this ques- 
tion, and ended by satisfying 
neither. He offended the 

* For biography, see Append ix. 



THE MEXICAN WAR 



275 



southern Whigs by advising against the project, while he 
did not take strong enough grounds against it to suit the 
aboHtionists in the North who had in 1840 formed the Lib- 
erty party in opposition to slavery. Polk was elected. 

Texas Annexed. — After Polk's election, but before he 
came into office, Texas was annexed, and a few months later 
it was admitted to the Union as a State. Mexico had never 
given up her claim to Texas. She might have consented 
to the annexation but for a dispute that had arisen about 
the western boundary, which Texas claimed was the Rio 
Grande, while 
Mexico asserted it 
was the Nueces. 
Polk sustained the 
claim of Texas, 
and ordered Gen- 
eral Zachary Tay- 
lor* to take pos- 
session of the 
country to the Rio 
Grande. Taylor 
stationed his forces 
opposite Matamo- 
ros, near the 
mouth of the river, 
and established a 
blockade. 

The Beginning of 
War. — In April, 
1846, the Mexicans 
Americans. 




Taylor's campaign 



crossed the river and attacked some 
On the 8th of May Taylor encountered a Mex- 
ican force larger than his own at Palo Alto, and defeated 
them. They retreated to Resaca de la Palma, where Taylor 
overtook them the next day and again defeated them. The 
Mexicans then crossed to the southern side of the Rio 
Grande. Taylor followed and took possession of Matamo- 

* For biography, see Appendix, 



276 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

ras, although war had not yet been declared. As soon as 
news reached Washington of Taylor's first fight Polk sent 
a message to Congress declaring that Mexico had invaded 
our territory and shed American blood on American soil. 
On May 13 Congress declared war. 

Monterey and Buena Vista. — In September Taylor stormed 
the fortified city of Monterey, which was defended by a 
force much larger than his own. After four days of hard 
fighting the Mexicans surrendered on September 24. A 
few months later Taylor won the most brilliant victory of the 
war. Most of his troops had been sent away to join General 
Winfield Scott,* who was about to invade Mexico by way of 
Vera Cruz. Taylor had only five thousand men left, but at 
a place called Buena Vista he stationed them at the end of 
a narrow mountain pass, and waited for his enemy. The 
Mexicans, twenty thousand strong, attacked him on Febru- 
ary 23, 1847. With his small force Taylor held his ground 
all day, and finally drove his adversary into retreat. This 
victory ended a most successful campaign. 

Conquest of New Mexico and California. — The settlement 
of the boundary of Texas was not the chief reason for war 
with Mexico. Many Americans were determined to have 
no other western boundary for the United States than the 
Pacific Ocean. Early in the war General Kearny was sent 
to conquer New Mexico and California, a thinly settled 
part of the Mexican republic. Santa Fe, the capital of New 
Mexico, was taken without a struggle, and New Mexico 
was declared a part of the United States. General Kearny 
at once pushed on into California. 

The Americans living there had set up a government for 
themselves as soon as they heard of the war with Mexico. 
They called this the " Bear Flag Republic." The United 
States had placed warships ofif the coast ready to take 
advantage of any excuse for seizing California. It was 
thought that Great Britain and France both meant to seize 
that region if they could, so when the war with Mexico 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



THE MEXICAN WAR 



277 




began Commodore Stockton, commander of the Pacific 
squadron, demanded the surrender of Monterey, San Fran- 
cisco, and other ports. All were given up without oppo- 
sition. 

Campaign of General Scott. — General Winfield Scott was 
at that time the commanding General of the United States 
army. He set out to 
take the city of Mex- 
ico. He landed, in 
March, 1847, at Vera 
Cruz, and laid siege 
to the city. The fort 

there was the strong- e **? 

^ Scott's campaign 

est in Mexico, but 

Scott carried it and the city on March 27. Advancing to- 
ward the capital, he fought a battle at Cerro Gordo on April 
18, and won a complete victory, taking three thousand pris- 
oners. His own army numbered only about ten thousand 
men, but within a month he reached Puebla, and after seve- 
ral minor encounters he fought in August the battles of 
Contreras, Churubusco, and San Antonio, winning them all. 

After a brief armistice Scott pushed forward, and on the 
13th of September stormed and carried the fortress of Cha- 
pultepec, which guarded the city of Mexico. The Ameri- 
cans followed the fleeing Mexicans to the city gates, and 
fought them till dark. The next morning they forced their 
way into the city, and after two days of fighting were in 
complete possession. This ended the war. 

The Treaty of Peace with Mexico. — A treaty of peace was 
made at Guadalupe Hidalgo on February 2, 1848. Mexico 
gave up New Mexico and California, the United States pay- 
ing fifteen million dollars in return. The Rio Grande was 
accepted by Mexico as the boundary of Texas, which was in 
accordance with the Texan claim. The total cost of the 
Mexican War has been estimated at one hundred and sixty- 
six million dollars. But, alas ! we must add to the money 
cost the loss of twenty-five thousand lives, mostly those of 



2^8 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

young men. The gain was a vast territory, including Cali- 
fornia, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and parts of 
Wyoming and Colorado. California soon became the treas- 
ure house of the world for gold, and other sections of the 
territory have yielded fabulous sums in silver. 

The Finding of Gold in California. — In 1848 a man named 
Sutter lived at Sacramento, where there were four houses 
included in Sutter's fort. Sutter was building a little mill 
on a stream, where one Marshall was to cut lumber for 
him. One morning in January Marshall saw some yellow 
particles in the sand of the stream, and gathered them up. 
Suspecting that they might be gold, he rode at once to 
Sutter's fort. There he and Sutter locked themselves in 
with a cyclopedia and a pair of scales, and presently decided 
that the little yellow grains were in fact gold. 

Sutter never completed his mill. He had something more 
profitable to do. Presently tens of thousands of men from 
the States, from Europe, from China, and from the ends of 
the earth were flocking to California by way of Cape Horn, 
the Isthmus of Panama, and across the desert plains. Many 
died on every route, but the rest pushed on eagerly to the 
land of gold. 

New States. — The States admitted to the Union during 
Polk's administration were Texas, December 29, 1845; 
Iowa, December 28, 1846; Wisconsin, May 29, 1848. 

Summary. —I. The question of annexing Texas was an important 
issue in the election of 1844. The Democrats carried the day, electing 
James K. Polk to be President. Texas was annexed in 1845, and during 
the year was admitted to the Union as a State. 

2. A dispute with Mexico concerning the boundary of Texas led to 
some fighting on the Rio Grande and to a declaration of war on May 
13, 1846. 

3. The war consisted of two great campaigns. General Taylor 
marched into northern Mexico and won the battles of Monterey and 
Buena Vista. General Scott landed at Vera Cruz and marched to the 
city of Mexico, defeating the Mexicans on his way at Cerro Gordo, 
Contreras, Churubusco and San Antonio. Arriving in front of the 
city of Mexico he stormed and carried the fortress of Chapultepec on 



THE COMPROMISE OF 1 850, AND OTHER MATTERS 279 

the 13th of September, and two days later carried the city itself, thus 
ending the war. In the meantime General Kearny had conquered New 
Mexico and Commodore Stockton had seized upon California. 

4. By the treaty of peace (February 2, 1848,) Mexico gave up a vast 
territory, including California, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, 
and parts of Wyoming and Colorado. 

5. In 1848 gold was discovered in California, and gold seekers by 
tens of thousands flocked to that region from all the States and from 
many other parts of the world. 

Collateral Reading. — Rhodes's " History of the United States," I., 
82-90. Garland's " Life of Grant," 83-86, 91-102. Rhodes's " History 
of the United States," I., 110-113. 



CHAPTER XLII 



THE COMPROMrSE OF 185O, AND OTHER MATTERS 



The Election of 1848. — In 1848 the Whigs took General 
Zachary Taylor for their candidate. He knew little of 
politics, and seemingly had no 
political opinions. But his glory 
was great on account of his vic- 
tories in Mexico, and the Whigs 
took him as a candidate whom 
they could elect. 

General Lewis Cass, of Mich- 
igan, was the candidate of the 
Democrats. There was a third 
candidate, representing the Free 
Soil party, which had been 
formed out of the old Liberty 
party. A great many Democrats 
and some Whigs had joined this 
new party and nominated Martin Van Buren as their can- 
didate. Van Buren drew heavily from the Democrats, and 
at the election Taylor was chosen, with Millard Fillmore 
for Vice President. 




Zachary Taylor 



280 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

The Wilmot Proviso. — In the meantime the slavery 
question had come up in a new form to vex the old political 
parties. When it was proposed to purchase lands from 
Mexico, Congressman David Wilmot, a Pennsylvania 
country lawyer, serving as a Democratic Congressman, sur- 
prised the country by moving to insert in the appropriation 
bill an amendment providing that " Neither slavery nor 
involuntary servitude shall ever exist in any part of said 
territory." This amendment, which was called the Wilmot 
Proviso, passed the House but failed in the Senate. It had 
the effect, however, of stirring up angry discussion of the 
slavery question at a time when the leaders of both parties 
were doing their utmost to keep such discussion down. 

A New Slavery Agitation. — As Mexico had abolished 
slavery before the war, the territory which we got from her 
came to us without that institution. The Southern states- 
men insisted that as this territory had been paid for with the 
money of all the people, and fought for by troops from North 
and South alike, it should be freely open to settlement from 
both sections, and that slave holders moving into it should 
be permitted to carry their negroes with them, as they did 
their other property. 

Behind this question of slavery there was another. The 
North and South were jealously struggling with each 
other for strength in the Senate. The two sections were 
equally balanced there, and it was seen that every new State 
which came in with slavery w^ould add two Senators to the 
Southern strength, while, if slavery was excluded from the 
new Territories, all the new States would be free and the 
North would presently completely outvote the South in the 
Senate. The contest was a bitter one, and there was grave 
talk of a dissolution of the Union. The extreme anti- 
slavery men at the North, so far from being disturbed by 
this threat, were willing enough to have the Union dis- 
solved if by that means they could get rid of slavery. 

The California Case. — As we have already seen, California 
rapidly filled up with people after gold was discovered, and 



THE COMPROMISE OF 1850, AND OTHER MATTERS 28I 



^^^— ». 




Emigrants on their way to California 

its population was now more than great enough to make a 
State. General Taylor suggested to the Californian^ that 
they should adopt a Constitution at once and apply for 
admission to the Union. They did this, and put into their 
Constitution a clause forbidding slavery. There were 
Southern men and Northern men in California, but nobody 
there wanted negro slaves. 

In 1849 California asked for admission as a free State. 
The Southern members of Congress would not consent to 
this unless it should be agreed at the same time that the 
rest of the new territory should be open to slavery. There 
were hot debates in Congress, and the spirit of disunion 
continued to grow at the South. 

The Three Greatest Statesmen.— In the Congress of 1849-50, 
there sat together in the Senate for the last time, three of the 
greatest men this country has ever known — Clay, Web- 
ster, and Calhoun. They had been born within five years 
of one another, and they died within about two years of 
one another. Calhoun was a Democrat, Clay and Webster, 
Whigs. For a whole generation these three had dominated 
legislation and largely determined the country's policy. 

Seeking a Compromise. — Clay, the great compromiser, 
had come to the capital, old and ill, hoping to be a 



282 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 




John C. Calhoun 



quiet looker - on rather 
than the active leader 
that he had always been. 
But he was by instinct a 
peacemaker, and he loved 
the Union more than 
everything else. He had 
secured peace by the Mis- 
souri compromise in 1820 ; 
he had put an end to nulli- 
fication by the compro- 
mise tariff of the early thir- 
ties ; and now had come to 
him another opportunity, 
as he believed, to save his 
country from dissolution 
and ruin. In consultation with Webster and others he de- 
vised a plan and spoke in its behalf with such captivating 
eloquence that men came from far and near to listen 
to his winning words, and women kissed him when he 
had done. Calhoun was 
was too old and feeble 
to speak, but another 
Senator read for him 
what he wished to say 
in this crisis. Finally 
came Webster with his 
celebrated " Seventh of 
March " speech in favor 
of the compromise. The 
speech was one of the 
greatest that Webster 
had ever made — equal 
in eloquence to his 
celebrated reply to 
Hayne — but it bitter- 
ly disappointed his Henry Clay 




THE COMPROMISE OF 1850, AND OTHER MATTERS 283 




friends at the North, who had hoped that he would take 
ground in favor of the Free Soil movement without com- 
promise. 

The Compromise Meas- 
ures. — Clay carried his 
point. Five bills were 
passed by Congress 
which it was fondly be- 
lieved would settle the 
slavery question for- 
ever. 

The first provided 
that California should 
come into the Union 
as a free State (map, p. 
285). The second pro- 
vided that the rest of 
the region acquired 
from Mexico should 
be divided into two 
Territories, called New Mexico and Utah, with no restric- 
tion as to slavery. In any States that might be made from 
these Territories, the question of slavery or no slavery was 
to be decided by the people there. The third bill provided 
for settling a boundary dispute between Texas and New 
Mexico. These three bills were originally introduced as 
one, called the Omnibus Bill, 

The fourth of the compromise bills forbade the slave 
'trade within the District of Columbia, but permitted the 
holding of slaves there. 

The fifth bill was the Fugitive Slave Law. It provided 
that United States officers in all the States should arrest all 
runaway negroes, and return them to the persons who 
claimed them as their owners. 

Effect of the Fugitive Slave Law. — This law had very little 
effect except to increase the anger of the people over the 
question which the compromise was intended to settle. 



Daniel Webster 



284 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 



Many Northern States passed " personal liberty bills," which 
interfered with the execution of the Fugitive Slave Law, and 

to a large extent 
nullified it. In 
some cases mobs 
of citizens rescued 
runaway negroes 
who had been ar- 
rested under the 
law, and in spite of 
the law anti-slav- 
ery men in parts of 
the North organ- 
ized a system by 



i 

^^ 'Setlled area in 1830 

Ky..:-lDots indicate regions settled'' 
ti^ between 1830 and 1850 -^ 




Settled area in 1850 



which negroes were aided in escaping to Canada. This was 
called the " Underground Railroad." In the midst of this 
excitement, in 1852, " Uncle Tom's Cabin," by Mrs. Har- 
riet Beecher Stowe,* 
was published. It was 
written to excite sym- 
pathy for slaves and 
hostility to slavery. It 
was widely circulated 
and greatly increased 
the anti-slavery feeling 
in the North, and it still 
further angered the 
Southern people. 

Death of Taylor.— The 
Census. — President Tay- 
lor died in July, 1850, 
and Millard Fillmore,* 
the Vice President, be- 
came President. Cali- ^'"^^^ ^^""^"^^^ 

fornia was admitted to the Union as a State, September 9, 
1850, The census of that year gave the population of the 

♦ For biography, see Appendix. 



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nH 


^H^K *' ^ 


• ''"1 


^HJI^K^ Vy 


-■•"■1 


/•^ s -'^ 


^^H^HBU jSk 


'^^wH 


nfMNM^kT^- 


i^< 9| 


KH^^H||g 


|s^j| 


H^^ 


^H 


■■■d^^M 


^9^ 



286 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 



country as 23,190,000, or almost exactly six times the popu- 
lation when the first census was made sixty years before. 
The number of States in the Union had increased from 
thirteen to thirty-one. 

The Election of Franklin Pierce. — As the election of 1852 
drew near, both the Whig and Democratic parties tried hard 

to keep the slavery 
question out of politics. 
Both treated it as al- 
ready settled by the 
compromise. Franklin 
Pierce* was the candi- 
date of the Democrats, 
and General Winfield 
Scott of theWhigs. The 
Whig party lost its anti- 
slavery members at the 
North and gained few • 
votes in the South. 
Pierce was elected, with 
William R. King, of 
Alabama, for Vice 
President. Scott was 
the last Whig candi- 
date ever named for the Presidency. 

Cuba. — Having acquired so much new territory, the people 
became anxious to get Cuba also. Several expeditions were 
secretly organized in this country by a Cuban named Lopez 
for the invasion of that island. Lopez declared that the 
Cubans were ready to revolt against Spain and welcome an 
American government. All these expeditions failed, and in 
1 85 1 Lopez was caught by the Spanish and shot. 

The Ostend Manifesto. — Pierre Soule was sent by Presi- 
dent Pierce as Minister to Madrid, and instructed to secure 
the cession of Cuba to the United States by Spain. Our 
Ministers to England and France met Soule in conference 

* For biography, see Appendix. 




Franklin Pierce 



THE COMPROMISE OF 1850, AND OTHER MATTERS 287 

at Ostend, in Belgium. The three drew up an official report 
concerning Cuba, which was called the Ostend Manifesto. 
It recommended the purchase of the island, and suggested 
that if Spain would not sell, the United States might be 
justified in taking Cuba by force. 

The Opening of Japan. — The settlement of California and 
Oregon made it desirable to have a line of steamers on the 
Pacific, and coaling stations were needed in Japan. At that 
time no Christian nation except the Dutch was allowed to 




Perry in Japan 

trade with Japan, and even the Dutch were not permitted to 
dwell in that country. In 1852 Commodore Matthew C. 
Perry, a brother of Oliver Hazard Perry, was sent with a 
fleet to Japan to "persuade " that nation to open her ports 
to American ships. Running his cannon mouths out of their 
portholes, Perry succeeded in " persuading " Japan to make 
a treaty permitting Americans to trade with two of the 
Japanese ports. This resulted presently in the complete 
opening of that " hermit country " to the ships of all nations. 
The Gadsden Purchase. — In 1853 a new treaty was made 



288 THE TERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

with Mexico to settle the boundary between that country 
and the United States. By this treaty the United States se- 
cured forty-five thousand square miles of land south of the 
Gila River, and paid ten million dollars for it. This is called 
the Gadsden Purchase from the name of the man who nego- 
tiated the treaty. 

The Martin Koszta Case. — The United States had always 
contended that foreigners who became naturalized citizens 
were entitled to protection against all foreign powers in- 
cluding the countries of their own birth. A Hungarian 
exile named Martin Koszta had come to the United States, 
lived here two years, and formally declared his intention 
to become a citizen. He then went (1853) to Turkey on 
business and put himself under protection of an American 
Consul. The Austrians kidnaped him, claiming him as 
a subject of Austria. Captain Ingraham, of the United 
States sloop of war *' St. Louis," demanded Koszta's release, 
and threatened to fire on the Austrian ship on which he was 
held. This brought the Austrians to terms and settled the 
question of the right of this country to protect its foreign- 
born citizens. 

Walker, the Filibuster. — In 1853, General William Walker, 
of Tennessee, led a filibustering expedition into Lower 
California and tried to stir up a revolt there, but failed. He 
then gathered a little force of adventurers about him, and 
made many raids into Central America, stirring up revolu- 
tions wherever he went, until at last, in i860, he was cap- 
tured in Honduras, tried by court-martial, and shot. 

Summary. — i. In 1848 the Whigs elected General Zachary Taylor 
President. 

2. The Mexican cession immediately revived the dispute on the 
slavery question. Much excitement was provoked in Congress and 
elsewhere by the Wilmot proviso forbidding slavery in the ceded terri- 
tory. The excitement was increased when, in 1849. California applied 
for admission to the Union as a free State. Disunion and war seemed 
imminent. This was prevented by Henry Clay's compromise of 1850. 

3. So far from settling permanently the slavery question, as had been 
hoped, this compromise increased the discussion of the subject and the 



THE PROGRESS OF INVENTION 289 

danger to the Union. To this also the novel, " Uncle Tom's Cabin," 
largely added. 

4. President Taylor died in the summer of 1850, and Millard Fill- 
more became President. He was succeeded by Franklin Pierce 
(Democrat) in 1853. 

5. About this time a great desire arose in this country to annex 
Cuba. Several filibustering expeditions were taken to that island by a 
Cuban named Lopez, but they came to nothing. In the Ostend Mani- 
festo something like a threat to annex Cuba by force was made. 

6. In 1852 an American fleet under Commodore Perry was sent to 
Japan to open that country's ports to American ships. Japan had 
always excluded foreigners from her territory, but Perry secured the 
privilege desired. 

7. In 1853 the Gadsden purchase was made, by which the United 
States bought another large territory from Mexico. 

8. At about the same time our country asserted and maintained in 
the Martin Koszta case its right to protect naturalized citizens against 
the countries in which they were born, and Walker, the filibuster, began 
his career as a maker of revolutions in Spanish-American republics. 

Collateral Reading. — Rhodes's " History of the United States," I., 
122-127, 144-148, 216-222. 



CHAPTER XLIII 

THE PROGRESS OF INVENTION 

The Advance of Sixty Years. — The first World's Fair was 
lield in London in 1851. It was followed, in 1853, by a simi- 
lar fair in New York. This exhibition drew attention to the 
progress which the United States had made, especially in 
labor-saving machinery. From the beginning of civiliza- 
tion until near the end of the eighteenth century man had 
been content to make by hand whatever he needed ; to go 
about in boats propelled by paddles, oars, and sails; and 
for land travel to use wagons drawn by horses or oxen. 
Then came steam to work a revolution, and with it came 
the impulse to devise machinery of every kind by way of 
saving labor and improving products. 

Ocean Steam Navigation. — The greatest service of steam 



290 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 




" Savannah," first ocean steamship 




has been in the steamboat, the 
railroad, and the ocean steam- 
ship. The steamboat and the 
railroad have already been 
treated in former chapters of 
this history. Tlie ocean steam- 
ship was a natural outgrowth 
of the steamboat. At first it 
was thought that no steamship 
could ever be built which could carry coal enough to drive 
it across the ocean, and still leave room for freight. But 
as the steam engine was 
improved, it took less and 
less coal to produce the 
power needed, and in 1819 
the ship "■ Savannah " was : 
built in New York and • 
crossed from Savannah to 
England in twenty-six 
days. This boat did not 
depend entirely on steam power. The paddle wheels could 
be unshipped and hoisted on board, and with favoring winds 
sails were used to economize coal. It was twenty years 
later before steam became the sole motive power of ocean 
steamers ; but from its successful inauguration the develop- 
ment of the steamship has been rapid, and the ocean " grey- 
hound " of to-day is one of the modern wonders of the 
world. 

Cotton. — We have already seen (p. 250) how Whitney's 
cotton gin made cotton abundant and cheap by enabling a 
man to do in a day two or three thousand times as much as 
he could have done before in removing the seeds from 
cotton. This enormously increased the supply of raw cot- 
ton, and drew attention to the need there was of equally 
good machinery with which to make it into cloth. The 
first step in that direction was taken when James Har- 
greaves, an Englishman, invented a machine for spinning 



Modern steamship 



THE PROGRESS OF INVENTION 



291 



thread, which was called the spinning jenny. Arkwright 
came later with the spinning frame, and in 1779, Crompton 
perfected the spinning mule which still further cheapened 
the work of making yarns. The English tried to keep 
these inventions to themselves but after a while Samuel 
Slater, an English apprentice, came to this country, bring- 
ing the machines in his head, as it were. He had studied 
them carefully, measuring all their parts, and fixing the 
measurements in his memory. In 1790, Slater, with his 
own hands, constructed a cotton mill at Pawtucket, Rhode 
Island. 

Cotton Factories.- — The power loom was invented in 1785, 
but not set up in England till 1806. This was a loom 
driven by steam or water power and it took the place of 
hand looms, doing many times as much work in a day. The 
machine was a profound secret in England, but Francis C. 
Lowell went to that country, learned all that he could about 
it, and returned in 1814. Then the power loom was in- 
vented over again from the information Lowell had brought 
back with him. He formed a company to make cotton 
goods at Waltham, Massachusetts, which built the first cot- 
ton "factory" set up anywhere in the world. There had 
been mills before, at some of which cotton was carded, at 
others spun, and at still others woven into cloth. But 
neither in England nor in America was there a "factory" 
where all these things were done under a single manage- 
ment. 

Harvesters. — Early in the Christian era efforts were made 
to construct machines 



for reaping grain. But 
more than seventeen 
hundred years passed 
away before the mod- 
ern reaper appeared. 
By 1835 three English 
machines had been 
made to work, but 

18— Egg. Hist. 




Reaper, 1840 



292 



THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 



none of them worked well enough to come into general use. 
American inventors did better, Robert jMcCormick and 
Cyrus Hall McCormick, father and son, worked patiently 
at this problem for several years. They improved upon the 
ideas of many unsuccessful inventors, and in 1831 C. H. 
iMcCormick constructed a reaper which he patented three 
years later, but did not sell till 1S40. His reapers were for 
several years made only by hand at a blacksmith's shop in 
\"irginia. McCormick exhibited his machine at the World's 
Fair in London, in 1851. It took the gold medal. Another 
American inventor, Obed Hussey, exhibited a reaper, which 
was the only rival of McCormick's. 

Goodyear's Rubber. — Another invention which has done 
great good in the world was that of vulcanized India rubber, 
invented by Charles Goodyear,* in 1839. Up to that time 
India rubber had been of very little use. It had been tried 
for many things, but it would not last in warm weather. 
Goodyear's invention overcame this dif^culty, and made 
possible rubber overshoes, water-proof garments, fire hose, 
rubber belting for machinery, and many other articles now^ 
in daily use. A\dcanite or hard rubber was a later and even 
more remarkable invention. 

The Electric Telegraph. — Having secured the means of 
easy and rapid travel by railroad, the steamboat, and 
the steamship, and having thus extended 
commerce, man's next need was to devise 
a means of quick communication over long 
distances. Samuel Finley Breese Morse,* 
already a well-known artist, succeeded, 
after years of struggle, in introducing the 
American system of electric telegraph. 
There were twelve 3^ears of doubt and de- 
lay. At last Congress appropriated thirty 
thousand dollars, with w-hich Morse built 
a telegraph line from Washington to Balti- 
First telegraph instru- "^^re. The first message sent over it con- 

ment * For biography, see Appendix. 




THE PROGRESS OF INVENTION 



293 



sisted of the words, " What hath God 
wrought ? " 

The introduction of the telegraph 
into general use was very slow ; but 
success came to Morse at last, and 
when it came it was complete. Many 
countries gave him decorations in gold 
and diamonds. He died at the age of 
eighty-one years, but before his death 
he had seen the telegraph in operation 
all over the world. 

Elias Howe and the Sewing Machine.— 




Howe's first sewing machine 

Elias Howe,* a poor 



working machinist, invented the sewing machine in 1847. 
His one important invention was that of putting the eye of 
the needle in its point. This alone made sewing machines 
possible, and gave to mankind cheaper and more abundant 
clothing than had ever been known before. 
Hoe's Invention. — The next inventor to make great im- 
provements was Rich- 
ard M. Hoe. He made 
improvements in the 
cylinder press, and in 
1846 brought out the 
famous " Lightning 
Press." 

The modern Hoe 
sextuple press prints 
paper sixt y-t h r e e 
inches wide at the rate 
of over twenty-five 
miles an hour. The 
paper comes out at the other end of the press printed on 
both sides, cut into newspaper sheets, folded, and pasted, 
ready for delivery. 

Anaesthetics. — The discovery of the use of anaesthetics, 
that is to say substances which render a human being insen- 

* For biography, see Appendix. 




Early cylinder press 



294 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

sible to pain for a time, is regarded, so far as the science of 
medicine is concerned, as the crowning glory of the first 
half of the nineteenth century. This discovery cannot be 
credited to any one person. Horace Wells, a dentist, is 
said to have used nitrous oxide gas in extracting teeth as 
early as 1844. Dr. W. T. G. Morton is credited with hav- 
ing administered ether in the Massachusetts General Hos- 
pital in 1847, during a surgical operation. Sir J. Y. Simp- 
son, an Englishman, first announced chloroform as an anaes- 
thetic. The discovery of this is also ascribed to Dr. Jack- 
son, of Sag Harbor, New York, and to others. 

Summary. — i. The World's Fair at New York in 1853 called attention 
to the progress of invention during the sixty-four years since Wash- 
ington was elected President. The most important of these inventions 
were the steam railroads, boats and ships, the cotton gin, the spinning 
jenny, the power loom, reaping machines, vulcanized rubber, the 
electric telegraph, the sewing machine, the modern printing press, and 
the use of anaesthetics. 

Collateral Reading. — Parton's " Book of Biography," 159-161, 215-220. 



CHAPTER XLIV 

THE KANSAS-NEBRASKA DEBATE ; THE KNOW-NOTHING 
party; THE DRED SCOTT CASE; THE PANIC OF 1857; 
THE MORMONS 

The Kansas-Nebraska Bill. — Congress passed a bill in 1854 
to organize the Territories of Kansas and Nebraska. Those 
Territories were a part of the Louisiana Purchase. As they 
lay north of the southern line of Missouri, slavery was for- 
bidden in them by the Missouri Compromise. But many 
of the people in the South claimed that the Missouri Com- 
promise was unconstitutional, while many other both North 
and South held that it had been practically repealed by the 
Compromise of 1850 w^hich permitted slavery in territory 
acquired from Mexico, lying partly north of that line ; this 
made all California free, though part of it lay south. 



THE KANSAS-NEBRASKA DEBATE 



^-95 




Kansas and Nebraska Territories 



Stephen A. Douglas, 
a Democratic Senator 
from Illinois, who 
hoped to become Pres- 
ident, was the leading 
advocate of this view. 
He held that by the 
Compromise of 1850 
Congress had estab- 
lished a new principle, 
giving up its right to 
make laws concerning 
slavery in the Terri- 
tories, and leaving that 
question to be decided 
by the people of each Territory for themselves. It was he 
who introduced the bill to organize Kansas and Nebraska, 
and in order to make matters sure he put into it a provision 
which declared the Missouri Compromise inoperative. 

The Kansas Struggle. — Under this bill, men owning slaves 
were free to take their negro property with them, when 
settling in either of the two Territories. And the legisla- 
ture of either Territory could decide whether slavery should 
be permitted there or not. 

As Nebraska lay far to the north, with Iowa alongside, 
nobody expected many slave holders to settle in that Terri- 
tory, but Kansas was debatable ground, and the debate 
took the form of a rush of settlers from north and south, 
each side hurrying as many men as possible into that region 
in order to control it. Slave holders from Missouri and 
Arkansas, and from other States, flocked into the Territory 
at once, and to oflfset them "emigrant aid societies" were 
formed in New England and New York, where they raised 
money with which to pay the expenses of free-state emi- 
grants, and to arm them with guns. Some of these turned 
back, but many of them took up lands in Kansas. 

In Missouri, secret societies called " blue lodges " were 



2g6 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

organized, and their members were pledged to vote at the 
first Kansas election. Many of these did not intend to 
settle there but went into the region just in time for the 
first election. At that election the free-state men generally 
refused to vote on the ground that the election was not 
fair. The pro-slavery men elected a legislature to their 
liking and it adopted a slave code. During the next year 
the free-state men organized a state government for them- 
selves, and asked admission to the Union. The pro-slavery 
men fell upon this government and overthrew it. The 
struggle for supremacy became a civil war. There was 
much fighting, great violence, and some bloodshed. 

The Sumner-Brooks Affair. — During the hot debate con- 
cerning Kansas, Senator Sumner, of Massachusetts, made 
an eloquent and bitter speech in the Senate on " The Crime 
Against Kansas." In the course of it he denounced and 
ridiculed Mr. Butler, of South Carolina. Thereupon, Con- 
gressman Preston S. Brooks, a nephew of Butler's, went 
into the Senate chamber when the Senate was not in session, 
and assaulted Sumner with a cane, leaving him prostrate 
and insensible. In the excited state of public feeling at that 
time the whole country fell into a frenzy over this affair, 
the North forgetting the severity of Sumner's words, and 
the South forgetting the character of Brooks's attack. 
None of the more important events of that time did more 
than this personal encounter to set the nation in an uproar. 

The Know-Nothing Party. — During all its history the Whig 
party had enjoyed only four years of power in the nation. 
The party's career was now drawing to an end. In 1853, 
a new party was started which was called the Native Ameri- 
can party, or the Know-Nothing party. It held that no 
foreign-born citizen and no Roman Catholic should be 
elected to office. A great immigration of foreigners, mainly 
Roman Catholics, had occurred between 1840 and 1850, 
and this had aroused the fears of many. The new party 
took the form of a secret society, and surrounded itself with 
great mystery. The members of this party made it a rule 



THE KANSAS-NEBRASKA DEBATE 



297 



to answer " I know nothing " to every question that might 
be asked. But apart from its antagonism to Cathohcs and 
foreign-born citizens, the party had no particular views or 
principles. Before the next presidential election came, the 
tide had run out as swiftly as it had come in, and Fillmore 
and Donelson, the Know-Nothing candidates, received only 
eight electoral votes. The career of that party had ended, 
but it had served as one of the forces which were pulling 
the old parties to pieces. 

The Republican Party. — In the year after Know-Nothing- 
ism began, the Kansas-Nebraska bill was adopted, and it 
quickly aroused intense feeling. In the autumn of that 
year a new party came into being, and carried very nearly 
a majority of the Congressmen elected. It bore at first the 
awkward name of "Anti-Nebraska" but later came to be 
called the Republican part3^ Its chief doctrine was that 
no slave State should be 
formed out of any of the 
Territories. Many of the 
Know-Nothing leaders, 
many old Whigs, many 
Northern Democrats, and 
most of the Liberty party 
men became Republicans. 
This new party organized 
to oppose slavery in the 
Territories was a grave 
source of alarm to the 
South. 

The Election of 1856. — In 
1856 the Democrats nomi- 
nated and elected James 
Buchanan* for President, 
and John C. Breckinridge J""'"' Buchanan 

for Vice President. Fremont and Dayton were the Repub- 
lican candidates, and the fact that eleven States gave their 

♦ For biography, see Appendix. 




298 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

electoral vote to Fremont, a declared opponent of slavery, 
greatly startled the South. 

The Dred Scott Case. — Many years before a negro slave 
named Dred Scott had been taken by his master, an army 
surgeon, from the slave State of Missouri to a military post 
in the free State, Illinois. Under the law his master's act 
in taking him into that State made him a free man. But 
Scott was later taken back to Missouri, and there sold with 
his wife and two children. His new master having struck 
him, Scott brought a suit for assault against him. Under 
Missouri law, a slave had no right to sue, but it was con- 
tended for Scott that he had been set free by being taken 
to Illinois, and could not be again enslaved. 

This question was carried at last to the Supreme Court 
of the United States, and in 1857 it was decided against 
Scott on the ground that no negro of slave ancestry, whether 
he be a slave or not, had a citizen's right in the Courts of 
the United States. The judges, at the same time, stated 
that slaves were property ; that it was the duty of Congress 
to protect property, and, therefore, that Congress had no 
right to forbid slavery in the Territories. This was in effect 
a decision that the Missouri Compromise had never been 
valid in law. The decision still further excited both the 
North and the South, and helped onward that tendency 
toward disunion and war which was already well-nigh irre- 
sistible. 

The Panic of 1857. — In 1856, and the early part of 1857, 
speculation ran wild, especially in the new States where the 
banking laws were loose, and where the bank notes used 
for money were often of doubtful value. Business was 
everywhere disturbed, prices went up and down, and pres- 
ently in the autumn of 1857, there came a great 
panic. Most of the paper money in use became worthless 
because the banks that had issued it had failed. Everybody 
was in a fright, and for three years the business of the coun- 
try was unsettled. As the people always hold the political 
party in power responsible for hard times, this condition of 



THE KANSAS-NEBRASKA DEBATE 299 

things helped to weaken the Democrats, and strengthen 
the Repubhcans for the election of i860. 

The Mormons. — In 1830, a man named Joseph Smith 
founded the Mormon Church, which afterward came to be 
a serious source of trouble to the United States. Smith 
professed to have received The Book of Mormon from an 
angel, and on its teachings, and divine revelations which he 
professed to have received from time to time, he built his 
sect. After several removals the Mormons were driven out 
of Illinois because they set themselves above the law and 
practiced polygamy. They went to Utah, in 1847, ^"^ set- 
tled there, building Salt Lake City for their capital, and es- 
tablishing a despotic government of their own. In President 
Fillmore's time their leader was Brigham Young, and Fill- 
more appointed him governor of Utah. President Buchanan 
removed him in 1857, and was obliged to send troops to 
Utah, to quell the Mormon rebellion which arose in conse- 
quence. Utah soon became populous enough to form a 
State, but it was kept out of the Union because of Mormon 
polygamy until 1896, although polygamy was given up in 
1890. 

Summary.— I. In 1854 and the years following a great and angry con- 
test arose over the question of slavery in Kansas, and a civil war broke 
out in that Territory. The people of the entire country were greatly 
excited, and the matter went far to hurry on a final crisis over slavery. 

2. The Know-Nothing party was organized in 1853, as a secret 
society whose purpose was to keep all Roman Catholics and all foreign- 
born citizens out of office. It soon gave way before the more serious 
purposes of the people with regard to slavery. 

3. Those who opposed slavery were determined to prevent its 
extension into any of the Territories. To that end they united in a new 
Republican party. This party was defeated in the Presidential election 
of 1856. and the Democratic candidate, Buchanan, was elected. 

4. The slavery agitation was greatly increased in 1857 by the 
decision of the Supreme Court in the Dred Scott case, that no negro 
whose ancestors were slaves could have the rights of a citizen before 
the United States Court. 

5. In 1857 wild speculation resulted in a great panic, followed by hard 
times for two years afterwards. In their poverty and distress many of 



300 THE TERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

the people blamed the Democrats, as the party in power, for these mis- 
fortunes, and thus the opposition to that party was strengthened. 

6. It was during the period covered by this chapter (1857) that the 
Mormons in Utah began to give trouble. 

Collateral Readings. — Rhodes's " History of the United States," I., 
428-435, 483-491- Vol. IL, 50-55, 251-257. 



CHAPTER XLV 

THE IRRESISTIBLE TENDENCY TO WAR 

John Brown's Raid. — John Brown, a farmer in the Adiron- 
dacks, in northern New York, who was fanatically devoted 

to the cause of the 
negro, sent four of his 
sons to Kansas among 
the first settlers, and in 
1856 he followed with 
his other sons, and be- 
came a leader of the 
free-state men. He was 
called " Ossawatomie " 
Brown, from the name 
f ^^r=^t/^),y" J. '' % of the town in which he 

lived. 
v>k-^I *^~ ■ -^7,^"'--^^^,-J1^ In 1859, Brown went 

with his sons and others 

Preparing arms for the slaves ^^ Virginia, to set in 

motion a scheme he had 
long planned for putting an end to slavery. His plan was 
to liberate and arm the slaves and thus frighten the South 
into giving up slavery. One night in October of that year, 
with a little band of eighteen men, five of them negroes. 
Brown seized the United States Arsenal at Harpers Ferry. 
Colonel Robert E. Lee, of the regular army, was sent with 
government troops to suppress the insurrection. He bat- 
tered his way into the engine house of the Arsenal, where 





THE IRRESISTIBLE TENDENCV TO WAR 30I 

Brown and his followers were barricaded. Brown was ar- 
rested, convicted of treason and murder and hanged. 

The State Sovereignty Idea GeneraJ at First. — In the early 
days of the Republic, the idea was very generally held that 
each of the States was sovereign, and that the central gov- 
ernment was merely their agent for the performance of cer- 
tain duties which they had delegated to it. This doctrine 
was asserted from time to time in different States, as occa- 
sion arose. The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions of 
1798, asserted the right of a State to declare an act of Con- 
gress unconstitutional and void. Many persons in New 
England talked of taking their States out of the Union when 
the Embargo of 1807. destroyed the commerce by which 
they lived. Near the end of the War of 181 2, the New 
England States held a convention at Hartford, to express 
their dissatisfaction with the course of the general govern- 
ment and it was believed at the time that they meant to 
withdraw from the Union. 

In time, the Northern States came to have interests in 
common, and a strong national feeling grew up among 
them, while the South held firmly to the doctrine of State 
sovereignty. The great statesman, John C. Calhoun, of 
South Carolina, was the chief advocate of that doctrine. 
He maintained that a State might at will nullify an act of 
Congress within its own borders, and South Carolina took 
this step in regard to the tariff acts of 1828 and 1832, as 
related in a former chapter. 

The Sections Arrayed Against Each Other. — All this while 
the question of slavery tended to solidify the States of the 
North on the one hand, and those of the South on the other, 
each section standing for those policies of government which 
it desired enforced. As we have seen, the question of slavery 
in the Territories was quieted for a time by the Missouri 
Compromise in 1820, and again by the Compromise of 1850. 
Then came the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the fierce contro- 
versy which resulted from it. This brought the two sec- 
tions still more strongly into antagonism to each other. The 



302 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

resistance of the Northern people to the execution of the 
Fugitive Slave Law, Brooks's assault upon Sumner, the de- 
cision of the Dred Scott case, John Brown's raid, and many 
minor incidents tended to increase the feeling of hostility. 

The Election of i860. — In i860, the Democratic Conven- 
tion could not agree upon a platform or a candidate. The 
South was unwilling to accept Douglas and his doctrine of 
popular sovereignty unless he would consent to a declara- 
tion that it was the duty of the Federal government to pro- 
tect slavery m the Territories. The Northern Democrats, 
led by Douglas, refused to consent to this, and the party 
split in two. One part of it nominated Stephen A. Douglas 
for President, and Herschel V. Johnson for Vice Presi- 
dent. The other party nominated John C. Breckinridge, of 
Kentucky, and Joseph Lane, of Oregon, 

The opposition to the Republican party was still further 
divided by the fact that many old Whigs and Know-Noth- 
ings, in company with many persons who felt that to save 
the Union was the only duty of patriotic men, at that time, 
formed themselves into the Constitutional Union Party, 
and nominated John Bell, of Tennessee, and Edward 
Everett, of Massachusetts. It was certain that the Repub- 
licans could not secure a majority of the people's votes in 
support of any candidate they might nominate ; but it was 
equally certain that with three candidates in the field against 
them, they were likely to carry a majority of the electoral 
votes, and elect their candidates. They nominated Abra- 
ham Lincoln,* of Illinois, for President, and Hannibal Ham- 
lin, of Maine, for Vice President. 

Seward and Chase had been prominent candidates but 
neither of them could command votes enough in the Con- 
vention to nominate him. Lincoln had won prominence 
in the country two years before by means of a series of 
great debates between himself and Douglas, on the ques- 
tion of slavery in the Territories. He had also the advan- 
tage of being one of what he called " the plain people." 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



THE IRRESISTIBLE TENDENCY TO WAR 303 



What the Four Candidates Stood For. — The Republican 
party, in its platform, declared itself in favor of forever ex- 
cluding slavery from all the Territories which had not yet 



304 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

been made into States. At the same time it declared that 
it had no purpose to interfere with slavery in the States 
where it already existed by law. The Douglas Democrats 
declared themselves in favor of the popular sovereignty 
doctrine, and the Compromise of 1850, that is to say, they 
proposed to leave each new Territory to decide for itself 
whether it would have slavery or not. The Breckinridge 
Democrats insisted that the owners of slave property had 
the same rights in the Territories that were possessed by 
the owners of any other kind of property, and that it was 
the duty of Congress to protect them in their rights of 
property in slaves in all the Territories. The supporters of 
Bell and Everett declared themselves in favor of "the Con- 
stitution, the Union, and the Enforcement of the Laws." 

In the election the Republicans carried all the Northern 
States except New Jersey, and Lincoln was elected by 180 
out of 303 electoral votes. 

The Secession of South Carolina. — Almost all the Southern 
people believed firmly that any State had the right to with- 
draw from the Union when it pleased . A part of the South- 
ern people regarded the election of Mr. Lincoln as a sufiEi- 
cient reason for exercising that right. They held that Mr. 
Lincoln's party was purely sectional, that it existed only in 
the Northern States, and that his election was in fact an 
attempt of the North to rule the South without its consent. 

There was, therefore, a strong party in the South which 
favored the withdrawal of the slave States from the Union. 
South Carolina took the lead in this movement. That State 
called a Constitutional Convention together, and on the 
20th of December, i860, an ordinance was passed, declar- 
ing that South Carolina was no longer a State in the Union, 
but had resumed its independence. 

Other Cotton States Secede. — In January, 1861, Missis- 
sippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, and Louisiana held Con- 
ventions and adopted ordinances of Secession. In Feb- 
ruary, Texas did the same. The rest of the Southern States, 
led by Virginia, hesitated. The people of Virginia, indeed. 



THE IRRESISTIBLE TENDENCY TO WAR 305 

voted overwhelmingly against secession, believing it to be 
bad politics, and wholly unnecessary. 

Formation of the Confederate States. — Delegates from 
the six States which had seceded during December and 




Jefferson Davis 

January, met on February 4, at Montgomery, Alabama, 
and organized themselves into a new republic called the 
" Confederate States of America." Jefferson Davis,* of 
Mississippi, was chosen President, and Alexander H. 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



306 THE PERIOD OF COMPROMISE 

Stephens,* of Georgia, Vice President. Texas joined this 
Confederacy March 2. 

The seceding States seized upon the forts, arsenals and 
other property of the United States within their borders. 
The only Southern forts remaining in the possession of the 
United States were Fort Sumter, in Charleston Harbor, 
Fort Pickens, near Pensacola, Florida, the forts around 
Key West, and Fort Monroe, in Virginia — a State which 
had not yet seceded. 

Feeling in the North. — At first the North could not be- 
lieve that all this was to be taken seriously. It was thought 
that the matter would soon be settled in some way, and 
some prominent Northern men advised that the seceding 
States should be permitted to "go in peace." In his mes- 
sage to Congress in December, President Buchanan de- 
nied the right of any State to secede, but he also denied 
the right of the government to force any State to remain 
in the Union. 

Vain efforts were made to bring about a compromise. 
John J. Crittenden, of Kentucky, proposed to amend the 
Constitution, restore the Missouri Compromise line, and 
extend it to the Pacific Ocean, allowing slavery in all Terri- 
tories south of it, and prohibiting slavery in all Territories 
north. This came to nothing. 

The Peace Convention. — On February 4th, a peace Con- 
vention met in Washington at the suggestion of Virginia. 
It sat with closed doors and considered many suggestions, 
but nothing was accomplished. 

New States and the Census. — Three States came into the 
Union during Buchanan's administration — Minnesota, 
May II, 1858; Oregon, February 14, 1859; '^"^i Kansas, 
January 29, 1861. By the census of i860 the population 
of the Union was 31,440,000. In seventy years the nation 
had added twenty-one new States to the original thirteen, 
and had multiplied its population almost exactly by eight. 
The region between the Alleghanies and the Mississippi had 

♦ For biography, see Appendix. 



THE IRRESISTIBLE TENDENCY TO WAR 307 

been peopled, and eight of the twenty-one new States lay 
wholly west of the great river. The new States and Terri- 
tories presently to become States, had a trifle more than 
one-half the entire population of the country, which now ex- 
tended from sea to sea, and from the St. Lawrence and the 
great lakes to the Gulf of Mexico and the Rio Grande. 

Summary. — i- John Brown went to Virginia in October, 1859, for the 
purpose of arming the negroes there and scaring the South into giving 
up slavery. He took possession of the United States Arsenal at Harpers 
Ferry, was captured, convicted of treason, and hanged. 

2. The idea that each State was sovereign in itself was generally 
held at the beginning of our history. It was generally given up at the 
North as time went on, but the South still clung to it. 

3. In the election of i860 the Republicans were united, while their 
opponents were divided into three parties with three candidates. 
Abraham Lincoln was the Republican candidate. He carried the 
electoral vote of all the Northern States but one, and was elected. 

4. South Carolina seceded almost immediately, and the six other 
cotton States followed in January, February, and March. They formed 
themselves into a new Republic, under the name of the Confederate 
States of America, and seized upon most of the forts, arsenals, etc., 
within their borders. 

5. In Congress, and in a peace convention at Washington, earnest 
efforts were made to find a way out by compromise. All these efforts 
failed. 

Collateral Reading. — Rhodes's " History of the United States," II., 
391-401, 404-405; Vol. III., 11S-121, 195-201. Pollard's "The Lost 
Cause," 90-91, 346-355- 

19 — Egg. Hist. 



THE CIVIL WAR 



CHAPTER XLVI 

FROM THE FALL OF SUMTER TO McCLELLAN's APPOINTMENT 

Fort Sumter. — Major Anderson, of the United States 
army, with about one hundred men, had held Fort Moul- 
trie, in Charleston Harbor. As the fort could not be de- 
fended on the land side he had removed his garrison to Fort 
Sumter, which stood on an artificial island in the Harbor. 
The fort could not be properly defended without reenforce- 
ments of men and ammunition. Buchanan hesitated to 
send these lest their arrival should bring on a collision. 
But when Major Anderson reported that batteries were 
building which threatened the fort, the President forwarded 
reenforcements in an unarmed vessel called the " Star of 

the West." When the ship 
tried to enter Charleston Har- 
bor she was fired upon* and 
forced to turn back. 

The Fall of Sumter. — Lincoln 
came into ofifice on the 4th of 
March, 1861. He took several 
weeks in which to decide what 
was to be done about Fort 
Sumter. Finally he made up 
his mind to send a small fleet 
to Charleston with provisions 
and soldiers on board. He notified the Governor of South 
Carolina that the fleet would supply the fort with pro- 
visions only, and would land no troops or ammunition 
unless an attack was made. The Confederates accepted 

310 




Charleston Harbor 



FALL OF SUMTER TO McCLELLAN'S APPOINTMENT 3II 

this movement as a challenge and on the 12th of April, 
1 86 1, their batteries opened on Sumter. After a heavy 
bombardment, the barracks in the fort took fire, and it 
became evident that Major Anderson could hold the place 
no longer. He surrendered on the 13th, and after firing 
fifty guns in honor of the flag, he, with his men, retired to 
the fieet, and sailed away on the 14th. 

Effects of the Fall of Sumter. — The news of all this cre- 
ated tremendous excitement both North and South. In 




Interior of Fort Sumter 



the North, party differences were forgotten. People who 
had disagreed on the slavery question were agreed in the 
feeling that the Union must be preserved at all hazards. In 
the South, patriotic feeling took an opposite direction. 
Southern men of all parties felt themselves bound to fight 
for their States, rather than for the general government. 
After the first cannon boomed at Sumter, the two sections 
of the country were arrayed against each other, and men 
on both sides sprang to arms. On the day after the fall of 
Sumter Lincoln issued a proclamation calling " forth the 
militia of the several States to the aggregate number of 
seventy-five thousand." 



312 THE CIVIL WAR 

Until that time Virginia had held out stoutly against 
secession. Her people firmly believed in the right of a 
State to secede, but they held with equal firmness that there 
was at that time no proper occasion for the exercise of that 
right, and so long as Virginia maintained this attitude, the 
other border States 'held aloof from the movement. But 
Mr. Lincoln's call for militia included a demand upon Vir- 
ginia for her quota. This compelled her to make a hard 
choice. She must either secede, which she did not wish 
to do, or she must furnish troops with which to help coerce 
the seceding States, which she did not believe the general 
government had a right to do. In these circumstances 
Virginia seceded, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Arkansas 
followed her. Soon afterwards Richmond, Virginia, was 
made the Confederate capital. The first bloodshed of the 
war occurred in Baltimore, on the 19th of April, in a street 
fight between a mob and a Massachusetts regiment on its 
way to Washington. 

Advantages of the North. — The North had the advantage 
of a larger population, greater wealth, more abundant food 
supplies and a government with all its machinery in perfect 
operation. It had machine shops, also, and multitudes of 
skilled mechanics capable of producing whatever might be 
needed in that direction. It had great factories in which 
clothing, shoes, wagons, arms, ammunition and everything 
else necessary to war could be made abundantly, while the 
South had none of these. The North had ships, also, and 
shipyards in which to build more. The government at Wash- 
ington was able to shut up all the Southern ports with a block- 
ading squadron almost from the beginning. This prevented 
the South from selling her cotton abroad, and it prevented 
her from buying in other countries the arms, ammunition, 
clothing, medicines. and machinery which she needed forwar. 

Advantages of the South. — On the other hand, the people 
of the Southern States were more military in their habits 
than those of the North, and more accustomed to outdoor 
life and to the use of firearms. The long and rapid marches 



FALL OF SUMTER TO McCLELLAN'S APPOINTMENT 313 



which the Southern soldiers sometimes made, and their 
endurance of hardship, were wonderful. The South had 
also the advantage of lighting on the defensive. Her armies 
moved upon shorter inside lines and fought mostly in re- 
gions where the people were on their side. 

The Situation in 1861. — The Union armies in the summer 
of 1 861 numbered all told about one hundred and eighty 
thousand men, while the South had in all about one hundred 
and fifty thousand. On both sides the men were fresh from 
civil life, untrained, undisciplined, and poorly organized. 
The two armies were scattered over long lines, stretching 
from Missouri on the west, through Kentucky and Tennes- 
see to Virginia on the east, and southward 
along the coast. 

Early in that summer General George B. 
McClellan fought and won several small en- 
gagements in western Virginia, driving the 
Confederates from the mountains there. The 
Union sentiment was strong in that part of the 
State, and, as we shall see (p. 353), West Vir- 
ginia was later separated from Virginia and 
admitted to the Union. At the same time there 

was a struggle going on for 
possession of Missouri, a State 
which was divided in sym- 
pathy between the North and 
the South. But the first great 
battle ground of the war was 
in Virginia, in the region be- 
tween Washington and Rich- 
mond. 

The Battle of Bull Run, or 
Manassas. — Early in the sum- 
mer of 1861 General Beaure- 
gard, with about eighteen 
thousand Southern soldiers, 
took up a position at Man- 




Geo. B. McClellan 




SCALE OF MILES L 

First Battle of Bull Run 




314 THE CIVIL WAR 

assas Junction, about thirty miles southwest of Washington. 
In front of this position ran a stream called Bull Run, 
and along its line the first considerable battle of the war 
was fought on July 21. Beauregard's position threatened 
Washington, where General McDowell lay with about forty 
thousand men. 

There was another little Confederate army, just over the 
mountains in the valley of Virginia, commanded by General 
Joseph E. Johnston.* But General Patterson, 
with a Northern force, had been sent to the 
valley to keep Johnston there and prevent him 
from joining Beauregard. He did not suc- 
ceed m this. Johnston hurried to Manassas 
as soon as he heard that McDowell was ad- 
vancing. He succeeded in getting a part of 
his army there on the night before the battle, 
and in bringing up the rest of it while the 
battle was in progress. 
Joseph E. Johnston McDowell's plan was to cross Bull Run and 
attack Beauregard's left flank. A strong body 
of his troops succeeded in doing this. There was a sharp 
struggle here, and a part of the Southern army was driven 
back in some confusion. But General T. J. Jackson,* with 
a brigade of Virginians, stood firm and held the ground. 
It was then that General Bee rallied his brigade by crying 
out, "■ There stands Jackson like a stone wall." From that 
time forward Jackson was always known as " Stonewall " 
Jackson. 

At this critical moment fresh troops from Johnston's 
army, led by Kirby Smith, came upon the field, furiously 
attacked the advancing Federals, and drove them back 
across Bull Run. In their undisciplined condition the 
Northern troops fell at once into a panic, which quickly 
spread throughout the army. It broke ranks, and fled in 
confusion all the way to Washington. 

Effects of the Battle of Bull Run. — The result of this battle 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



FALL OF SUMTER TO McCLELLAN'S APPOINTMENT 315 

greatly encouraged the South, and made an impression fa- 
vorable to the South in Europe. The defeat taught the 
North to be more patient. It taught both sides that the 




A charge at Bull Run 

war was to be a long and terrible one. While the fugitives 
from Bull Run were still pouring into Washington, Con- 
gress voted to raise five hundred thousand men. In August 
General McClellan, who had won some success in western 
Virginia, was put in command of all the Union armies in 
place of General Winfield Scott, who had been the General 
in Chief, but who was found to be too old for this crisis. 



Summary. — i. Major Anderson removed his force from Fort Moul- 
trie, in Charleston Harbor, to Fort Sumter, a stronger place. After 
several attempts had been made from the North to send supplies to 
Major Anderson, the Confederates opened fire on Fort Sumter April 
12, 1861, and compelled its surrender. This was the beginning of war. 

2. Lincoln at once called on the States for seventy-five thousand men. 
Thereupon Virginia seceded, and the rest of the border States, with the 
exception of Kentucky and Maryland, followed her. The first bloodshed 



3l6 THE CIVIL WAR 

of the war occurred on the igth of April in a street fight between a 
Baltimore mob and a Massachusetts regiment. 

3. Early in the summer the Federal troops in West Virginia won 
some small battles, but the first great battle of the war was at Manassas 
Junction, or Bull Run, on the 21st of July. The Federal General, 
McDowell, there attacked the Confederate General Beauregard. The 
Northern forces were defeated and fied back to Washington. 

Collateral Reading. — Rhodes's " History of the United States,"' 
III., 347->^55. 364-383, 397-405. 411-413, 442-450. Pollard's "The Lost 
Cause," 144-150. 



CHAPTER XLVII 

FROM BALLS BLUFF TO ISLAND NUMBER lO 

Balls Bluff. — For three months the Army of the Potomac 
did nothing but drill and build fortifications around Wash- 
ington. Johnston's army lay at Centreville, and Confed- 
erate batteries were erected on the lower Potomac, which 
interfered with Washington's communication with the sea. 

On the 2 1st of October a small and on the Federal side an 
ill-directed battle took place at Balls Bluff, on the Potomac 
above Washington. The Union troops were driven back 
to the river, and many of them captured. After this defeat 
McClellan did nothing more for months. 

There was some activity on the part of the navy, and 
the forts at Hatteras Inlet and Port Royal, on the southern 
coast, were captured. The blockade of Southern ports was 
made stronger, but Englisli vessels built for that purpose 
were constantly engaged in blockade running. 

The Trent Affair. — The South had hope of persuading 
England to interfere in her behalf. English factories em- 
ploying many thousands of men depended on the Southern 
States for their cotton. It was believed in the Sotith that 
Great Britain would not long submit to a blockade which 
cut off the supply of cotton. 

In the hope of securing recognition by France and Eng- 



FROM BALLS BLUFF TO ISLAND NUMBER lO 317 

land, the Confederate government sent out two commis- 
sioners, Mr. Mason and Mr. Slidell, to lay their case before 
England and France. The commissioners ran the blockade 
to Havana. There they took passage in the English mail 
steamer " Trent." Captain Wilkes, in command of an 
American frigate, overhauled the " Trent " at sea, boarded 
her, and took off Mason and Slidell. The affair very nearly 
led to war between this country and England. The English 
even sent troops to Canada, and prepared fleets for battle. 
The British government demanded that Mason and Slidell 
should be given up. William H. Seward,* who was Secre- 
tary of State at Washington, saw clearly that Captain 
Wilkes had been in the wrong, and with an adroit explana- 
tion which satisfied the people ol the North he feet the Con- 
federate commissioners free. 

Forts Henry and Donelson. — The Confederate line of de- 
fense ran across the country from Virginia through Cum- 
berland Gap, and thence through Kentucky, by way of Mill 
Springs, Bowling Green, and Columbus, into Missouri. 
Two rivers, the Tennessee and the Cumberland, flowing 
northward and westward, crossed this line of defense. Near 
the border line between Tennessee and Kentucky the two 
streams lie within eleven miles of each other, and here the 
Confederates built Forts Henry and Donelson. 

In January, 1862, General Thomas defeated a Confederate 
force under Crittenden and Zollicoffer near Mill Springs. 
Shortly afterward General Grant,* with fifteen thousand 
men, supported by Commodore Foote with a fleet of gun- 
boats moved up the rivers against the two forts. The gun- 
boats silenced the batteries at Fort Henry on February 6, 
1862, before Grant arrived. The garrison retreated over- 
land to Fort Donelson, on the Cumberland. 

Grant moved at once upon that post. The gunboat 
fleet failed and was badly crippled in an attack upon the 
works there. Grant, now reenforced, surrounded the fort, 
and the Confederates undertook to cut their way out. On 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



u8 



THE CIVIL WAR 



the morning of February 15 they fell upon the right 01 
Grant's army, and after a hard fight broke through it. 
Grant was absent in consultation with Foote at the time. 
When he came back and saw what had occurred he was 
convinced that the Confederates must have weakened their 
forces at other points in concentrating upon his right. He 
rode rapidly to the left, calling to his men to fill their car- 
tridge boxes and get into line to prevent the enemy's 
escape. He pushed forward his left and captured a part of 
the Confederate work while his right was recovering the lost 




The War in the West 



ground in front. During the night after this battle Gen- 
eral Floyd, the Confederate connnander, escaped with a 
part of his army in two small steamers. General Pillow 
and General Forrest, with a few hundred men, got away on 
horseback over a submerged road. General Buckner, who 
was thus left in command, asked Grant what terms of sur- 
render he would allow, and Grant made his famous answer, 
" No terms except unconditional and immediate surrender 
can be accepted. I propose to move immediately upon 
your works." Fort Donelson surrendered February 16, 
1862, with nearly fifteen thousand prisoners. 



FROM BALLS BLUFF TO ISLAND NUMBER lO 319 

Effects of the Fall of the Forts. — This was the first 
Union success of considerable moment. The capture of the 
forts broke the Confederate Hne of defense and forced the 
Southern armies to abandon BowHng Green, Nashville, and 
Columbus. 

In the meanwhile an irregular warfare had been carried 
on from the beginning in Missouri. At the battle of 
Wilsons Creek, August 10, 1861, the Union General Lyon 
had been killed and his troops defeated. On the i8th of 
September, 1861, the Confederate General Price had at- 
tacked the town of Lexington, in Missouri, and captured 
three thousand prisoners. Fmally, on the 6th of March, 
1862, a few weeks after the fall of Fort Donelson, a severe 
battle was fought at Pea Ridge, in northern Arkansas, 
which secured Missouri to the North and thus completed 
the pusliing back of the Confederate forces along the whole 
western portion of their line. 

The " Merrimac " and the " Monitor." — The Confederates 
had seized the Portsmouth navy yard, opposite Norfolk, at 
the beginning of the war. The 
Union forces there, before aban- 
doning the post, had partly burned 
and sunk a new steam frigate called 
the " Merrimac." The Confed- 
erates raised the ship, plated her 
sides, and covered her deck with a 
sloping wall of railroad iron, and 
named her the " Virginia." This Hampton Roads 

ship steamed out into Hampton 

Roads (March 8, 1862), where lay five wooden L^nited 
States vessels. Some of these headed toward the new 
monster, but quickly ran aground. 

The war ships " Congress " and " Cumberland " and the 
batteries on shore at once opened fire on the " Merrimac," 
but their shots bounded like India rubber balls from her 
plated sides. She ran straight for the " Cumberland," and 
punched a great hole m the side of the ship with her steel 




320 



THE CIVIL WAR 



ram. The crew of the " Cumberland " continued to fire 
until the sinking of the vessel brought the muzzles of their 
guns to the water's edge. The " Merrimac " next fell upon 




The "Merrimac" and the "Monitor" 



the " Congress," which she quickly set afire with hot shot. 
The victorious ironclad then returned to her anchorage at 
Norfolk, her officers intending to steam out again on the 
following morning and destroy the " Minnesota," which lay 
hopelessly aground. 

There was consternation in the North. It was seen that 
wooden war vessels were useless against such a craft as 
this. But there was help at hand. While the Confederates 
had been raising the " Merrimac " and covering her with 
iron, another sort of ironclad vessel, planned by Captain 
John Ericsson, had been built. The '' Monitor," as she was 
called, was on her way southward, and was nearing Hamp- 
ton Roads at the very time when the " Merrimac " was 
sinking ships there. Built with a low deck, almost under 
water, and having a revolving turret containing two heavy 
guns, she was said to be like a " cheese box on a raft." 



FROM BALLS BLUFF TO ISLAND NUMBER 10 32 1 

This curious little craft ran into Hampton Roads on the 
morning of March 9, 1862. 

The " Merrimac," having come out again, steamed 
toward the " Minnesota," but the " Monitor " attacked 
her at once, and a four hours' battle ensued. Cannon balls 
glanced harmlessly off the sides of both ships. The " Merri- 
mac " tried to ram the " Monitor," but that small and 
nimble craft slipped away from the blow. Finally the 
" Merrimac " ceased firing, one of her officers saying that 
it would do just as much good to snap his fingers at the 
" Monitor " every two and a half minutes as to hurl cannon 
balls against her. The " Merrimac " returned to Norfolk. 
It was a drawn battle between these two, but while the 
" Monitor " lay in Hampton Roads the Confederate iron- 
clad could do no further damage to the fleet there. 

This was the first time when two ironclad ships met in 
battle. It wrought a revolution in the construction of 
naval ships, making an end of wooden men-of-war through- 
out the world, and beginning all that we now know of great 
marine fighting machines. 

The Battle of Shiloh, or Pittsburg Landing. — Some weeks 
after the capture of Fort Donelson Grant's army moved 
up the Tennessee to the neighborhood of Pittsburg Land- 
ing. General Buell, who was in command of the army 
south of Louisville had followed the retreat of the South- 
ern forces from Bowling Green to Nashville. He was now 
ordered to move westward and unite his army with Grant's. 
Grant did not expect the Confederates to attack 
him at Pittsburg Landing. Lie intended to at- 
tack them instead at Corinth, where General 
Albert Sidney Johnston and General Beaure- 
gard had, by great exertions, concentrated a 
new army. 

While Grant was waiting for Buell to come 
up, Johnston marched rapidly northward and 
fell upon the Union army on the morning of Albert S Tohn- 
April 6, 1862. A fierce struggle ensued near gton 




322 THE CIVIL WAR 

and round the little country church of Shiloh. The Union 
men were steadily forced backward, and some bodies of 
them were surrounded and captured. On the Northern 
side General Sherman * greatly distinguished himself on 
this day. General Albert Sidney Johnston, commanding 
the Southern army, threw himself into the thick of the 
fight and was mortally wounded. Beauregard succeeded 
him in command. Grant was several miles away when the 
battle began, and did not get to the field until it was in full 
progress. The first day of the battle was a defeat for 
the Federal army, which, when evening came, had been 
driven from its position, and was huddled around the land- 
ing at the river side. By the next morning a large part of 
Buell's army had come up, and fresh men fell upon the 
weary Southern soldiers, and after a hard struggle drove 
them back. They retired slowly and in good order, and 
the Union forces did not pursue them. 

Island Number lo. — \\'hile the battle of Shiloh was in 
progress General Pope and Commodore Foote with the 
gunboats attacked the Confederate works on Island Num- 
ber ID. in the Mississippi. This island lies in New Madrid 
bend, a great curve of the river below Columbus. By cut- 
ting a canal across the neck of land made by the bend in 
the river. Pope had placed himself below the fort, while 
Foote had run his gunboats past the batteries under a fear- 
ful fire. Under a vigorous and combined attack the fort 
was forced to surrender on April 7. Halleck, who com- 
manded the Union forces in the \\''est, now ordered Pope's 
force to join Grant at Pittsburg Landing, and went him- 
self to take command at that point. 

Halleck spent three weeks in preparation, and when at 
last he moved he consumed a month in slowly advancing 
by regular siege parallels against the enemy's position, 
twenty miles away. When he got there the Confederates 
had already abandoned the position, carrying away their 
guns and their stores. Memphis now fell into the hands 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



FROM BALLS BLUFF TO ISLAND NUMBER 10 323 

of the Union armies, and the Mississippi River was opened 
as far south as Vicksburg. A year had passed since the 
fall of Sumter. The line of Confederate defense in the 
West had been pushed south as far as Vicksburg, Chatta- 
nooga, and Cumberland Gap, but in Virginia nothing of 
any consequence had been accomplished. 

Summary. — i- A little battle at Balls Bluff on the Potomac was 
won by the Confederates on October 21, 1861, and Fort Hatteras and 
Port Royal on the southeastern coast were captured by the Federals. 
Nothing else was done in the East during that year. 

2. A United States vessel, under Captain Wilkes, overhauled the 
British mail steamer " Trent " at sea, and forcibly took from her 
Messrs. Mason and Slidell, Confederate commissioners, on their way 
to England and France. This very nearly led to war with England, 
but the affair was settled by the giving up of the commissioners. 

3. Early in 1862 General Grant, supported by Commodore Foote 
with a fleet of gunboats, captured the two Confederate forts, Henry 
and Donelson, in Tennessee. 

4. The Confederates having raised the sunken frigate " Merrimac," 
plated her with iron and re-named her " Virginia." She ran out into 
Hampton Roads, Virginia, and sank two United States warships 
(March 8, 1862). The next morning she was met by the new Federal 
ironclad ship, the " Monitor." This was the first battle ever fought 
between two ironclad ships. Neither hurt the other. 

5. The battle of Shiloh, or Pittsburg Landing, Western Tennessee, 
occurred April 6 and 7, 1862, between Grant and Albert Sidney John- 
ston. The first day the Confederates forced the Federal army back to 
Pittsburg Landing, on the Tennessee River, but during the night 
Grant was reenforced by Buell's army, and on the second day the Con- 
federates were slowly forced back, and finally withdrew to Corinth, 
whither they were not pursued. 

6. On the same day another battle was fought at Island Number 10 
in the Mississippi. There General Pope and Commodore Foote carried 
a strong Confederate fortress. 

7. Pope's army was then added to Grant's at Pittsburg Landing 
and General Hallock took command in person. After some weeks 
of waiting he marched against Corinth, but found when he got there 
that the Confederates were already gone. 

8. Thus during the first year of the war the Union forces had cap- 
tured three great Confederate strongholds in the West, pushed the 
Confederate line of defence as far south as Vicksburg. Chattanooga, 
and Cumberland Gap, and opened the Mississippi River to Vicksburg. 



324 THE CIVIL WAR 

Collateral Reading. — Rhodes's " History of the United States/ 
III., 608-614. Pollard's "The Lost Cause," 224-229, 239-242. 



CHAPTER XLVIII 

FROM THE FALL OF NEW ORLEANS TO THE SEVEN DAYS' 

BATTLES 

The Taking of New Orleans. — New Orleans, near the mouth 
of the Mississippi, was the principal city in all the South. 
Towards spring, in 1862, Commodore Farragut * was sent 
to capture it. He had a fleet of wooden warships, and 
with him was another little fleet of mortar boats under com- 
mand of Captain Porter. 

New Orleans was defended by two strong forts on the 
river bank at a point below the city where the stream is not 
more than half a mile wide. Below these a chain barrier 
was stretched across the stream, and above the forts lay a 
Confederate squadron, which included the ironclad ram 
" Manassas." 

Five days of bombardment by the mortars made no im- 
pression on the forts, and Farragut decided to take his 
chances in an attempt to run by them in his ships. He did 
this under a fearful fire, and succeeded in getting most of 
his ships above the forts. There a battle ensued between 
the Federal and the Confederate fleets. Farragut triumphed 
at last and sailed up to the city, which surrendered on 
April 25. 

The Peninsular Campaign. — While the Union forces had 
been making great gains in the West they had gained 
nothing thus far in Virginia. McClellan had drilled the 
Army of the Potomac until it had become a superb fight- 
ing machine, greatly outnumbering any force that the Con- 
federates could oppose to it. But he was cautious and long 
lay still in spite of the popular clamor for action and not- 
withstanding Mr. Lincoln's constant urging. 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



FALL OF NEW ORLEANS TO THE SEVEN DAYS' BATTLES 325 



At last McClellan planned a campaign. Instead of 
marching southward upon Richmond, he took his army by 
water to Fort Mon- 




WAR IN -V w, -V > 

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roe, in Hampton 
Roads, and set out for 
Richmond by way of 
the peninsula which is 
formed by the York 
and Jam.es Rivers. 
McDowell had been 
left with forty thou- 
sand men to guard 
Washing;ton, and 
presently was to move 
south and join Mc- 
Clellan before the Confederate capital. Another strong 
force under Banks was sent to the Shenandoah Valley to 
block that pathway toward Washington. McClellan had 
with him on the peninsula one hundred and twenty-one 
thousand men, forty-four batteries, and an equipment such 
as no army on this continent had ever possessed before. 
The only force that immediately stood in his way was one 
of eleven thousand men under Magruder at Yorktown. 
These had been stationed there merely for the purpose of 
delaying McClellan while the Confderate army at Richmond 
should be strengthened by reenforcements. 

Instead of attacking Magruder at once, McClellan laid 
siege to Yorktown, and lay before it for a whole month. 
Before he was ready to attack, the Confederates, having 
secured their purpose of delay, withdrew to Williamsburg, 
where, a little later, a sharp but indecisive battle was fought. 
After the battle the Confederates retired to Richmond, and 
McClellan advanced to the Chickahominy River, only a few 
miles from that city. In spite of his superior forces he sat 
down there to wait for McDowell to join him. He threw 
a part of his force south of the river, leaving the rest of it on 
the north. He pushed his line westward, fortifying 



326 THE CIVIL WAR 

Strongly and completely investing the city on its northern 
and eastern sides. 

Jackson's Valley Campaign. — In order to prevent Mc- 
Dowell from marching south to unite with McClellan, 
General Lee,* who directed all the Confederate armies, sent 
Stonewall Jackson to the Shenandoah Valley with a force 
of 17,000 men. The Federal force in that quarter was 
stronger than Jackson's, but it was so divided and scat- 
tered that the agile Southern General, moving suddenly 
and rapidly from point to point, was able to attack and 
defeat its several parts singly. He defeated Banks at Front 
Royal, May 23, and again at Winchester, May 25, driving 
him across the Potomac (map, p. 329). 

It was believed at Washington that Jackson intended to 
assail that city, and so McDowell was turned aside from his 
march on Richmond and sent into the valley to aid Fremont 
in an attempt to capture Jackson, who was now retracing 
his steps with bewildering rapidity. By the burning of 
bridges and by quick movements, Jackson prevented the 
Federal forces from uniting, and defeated them separately 
at Cross Keys and Port Republic on June 9. After one of 
the most brilliant campaigns in history he left the valley 
laden with spoils, having marched more than one hundred 
miles in a few days, won four battles, and captured three 
thousand five hundred prisoners. With that wonderful 
suddenness that characterized all his movements, Jackson 
appeared on McClellan's flank before Richmond in time to 
take part in the great struggle there. 

The Battle of Fair Oaks, or Seven Pines. — In the meantime 
a battle had already been fought near Richmond. Near 
the end of May a great storm had raised the waters of the 
Chickahominy so high that it was difficult for the two wings 
of the Federal army to act together. General Joseph E. 
Johnston, who was in command at Richmond, seized this 
opportunity. On the 31st of May he attacked that part of 
McClellan's army which lay south of the river and nearest 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



FALL OF NEW ORLEANS TO THE SEVEN DAYS' BATTLES 327 

to Richmond. The battle, which is cahed Fair Oaks in the 
North and Seven Pines in the South, lasted two days. On 
the first day the Confederates had the advantage. . On the 
second the Federals regained their lost ground, and pushed 
a part of their force to points within four miles of Rich- 
mond. General Johnston was wounded in the fight, and 
General Lee took charge of the army there. 
The Seven Days' Battles. — Lee's force was smaller than 




Battle of Malvern Hill 



McClellan's, but having succeeded in forcing the recall of 
McDowell to defend Washington, and having ordered 
Jackson to hurry to Richmond, he decided to attack Mc- 
Clellan, and if possible raise the siege of Richmond. He 
first sent his cavalry leader, J. E. B. Stuart, to study con- 
ditions in McClellan's rear, and Stuart marched entirely 
around the Federal army. On the 26th of June Lee threw 
a part of his forces across the Chickahominy, where they 
fell upon McClellan's right at Mechanicsville. During the 

20 — Egg. Hist. 



328 THE CIVIL WAR 

next day Jackson came up, and day by day the fighting 
continued for a whole weel<. 

McClellan's communications with his base of supply on 
the York River were cut, and to save his army from capture 
he determined to retreat by a narrow road to Harrisons 
Landing on the James River, where supplies could be 
brought to him by water. The retreat was conducted in a 
masterly manner amid difficulties of the most terrible kind. 
It was necessary to abandon field hospitals with all their 
wounded, to destroy great quantities of food and ammu- 
nition, to march over narrow and difficult roads by night, 
and fight stubbornly by day and all the day, every day. But 
at last, after a week of such work, McClellan reached Mal- 
vern Hill, near the James River. Here he took up a posi- 
tion where both his flanks were protected by the gunboats 
in the river. In spite of this the Confederates, flushed with 
their victories, assailed the impregnable position time and 
time again, and one of the fiercest battles of the war ensued, 
in which both sides fought with the courage and determina- 
tion of veterans. Every Confederate assault was repulsed, 
and as McClellan had reached the protection of his gunboats 
the famous Seven Days' fights were over. McClellan had 
succeeded in saving his army. Lee had succeeded in driv- 
ing that army away from Richmond. 

Summary. — i- In April, 1862. Farragut took New Orleans. 

2. In the spring of that year McClellan moved upon Richmond by 
way of the peninsula between the York and the James Rivers. After 
besieging Yorktown for a month and fighting a battle at Williamsburg, 
he look position on the Chickahominy River, where, on May 31 and 
June I, the battle of Fair Oaks was fought. 

3. About the same time Stonewall Jackson was sent to the valley 
to overcome the Federal forces there, and so to threaten Washington, 
as to prevent McDowell from reinforcing McClellan. After doing this 
Jackson suddenly moved to Richmond and joined Lee. 

4. Then followed the Seven Days' battles, in which McClellan was 
compelled to retreat, figliting all the way to James River. 

Collateral Reading. — Pollard's " The Lost Cause," 250-253. Rhodes's 
"History of the United States," III., 616-617; Vol. IV., 11-31, 37-49- 



FROM THE SECOND MANASSAS TO MURFREESBORO 329 



CHAPTER XLIX 



FROM THE SECOND MANASSAS TO MURFREESBORO 



The Second Battle of Manassas, or Bull Run. — Lincoln 
had lost confidence in McClellan. In July he brought 
Halleck from the West 
and placed him in su- 
preme command, al- 
though Halleck had 
done nothing in the war 
except interfere with 
Grant. The forces of 
Fremont, Banks, and 
McDowell were brought 
together before Wash- 
ington, placed under 
Pope, and named the 
Army of Virginia. Pope 
promptly advanced to- 
ward the Rappahannock. 

McClellan had been 
forced out of his works 
in front of Richmond, 
but his army was still 
strong, compact, and well 

organized at Harrisons Landing. Until that army should 
be dislodged Lee could not safely withdraw his own from 
the defense of Richmond. His first effort, therefore, was to 
force the Federal authorities to call back McClellan's troops 
to the North. To that end he sent Jackson to the Rappa- 
hannock to threaten Pope, and as fast as troops were with- 
drawn from McClellan's army to reenforce the Army of 
Virginia, Lee sent his other corps to join Jackson. 

Having got his whole army into position, he took per- 
sonal command of it, sent Jackson to march around Bull 




Second Battle of Manassas 



330 



THE CIVIL WAR 



Run Mountain and to come down upon Pope's rear at 
Manassas Junction. Pope promptly retired to protect his 
communications. On the 29th of August he fell upon 
Jackson in the second battle of Bull Run, which lasted for 
two days. Lee had quickly followed Jackson on his march, 
and instead of having Jackson alone to fight Pope found 
himself confronted by nearly the whole Confederate army. 
The second day ended in the defeat of the Federal army, 
which was driven back towards Washington, scattered and 
disorganized, after heavy losses. The battle s6rely dis- 
credited Pope, and there was fear in Washington that under 
his command the city could not be defended against that 
advance which Lee was now certain to make. Pope was 
therefore sent West to fight Indians, and the defense of the 
city was intrusted to McClellan. He soon re- 
stored the forces near Washington to the condi- 
tion of a well-organized army. 

The Battle of Antietam, or Sharpsburg. — There 
was now no enemy in Virginia for Lee to fight. 
The Federal armies were defending Washington 
instead of assailing Richmond. Lee determined 
at once to transfer the scene of war to the re- 
gion north of the Potomac, where he hoped that 
the presence of a Confederate army flushed with 
victory might induce the young men of Maryland to flock 
to his standard and bring Maryland into the Confederacy. 
"About the same time a Confederate army under Kirby 
Smith had marched northward 
from Tennessee through Ken- 
tucky, occupied Lexington, and 
pushed a detachment to Cov- 
ington, opposite Cincinnati. 
The Confederate General Bragg 
also had eluded General Buell, 
and was marching upon Louis- 
ville. The Confederates hoped 
thus to draw Kentucky also into 




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FROM THE SECOND MANASSAS TO MURFREESBORO 33 1 

their Confederacy and enlist many thousands of its young 
men in their armies. The cause of the South looked bright 
at that time, and the clouds that overhung the North had 
no silver lining. Lee was seriously threatening Washing- 
ton, Baltimore, and Philadelphia, while Bragg seemed likely 
to capture Louisville and Cincinnati. 

The Federal garrison at Harpers Ferry was not with- 
drawn when Lee crossed the Potomac, as he had expected 
it to be. He had therefore to send Jackson back to capture 
that place, which he did, taking about thirteen thousand 
prisoners. 

The two armies met on the 17th of September on Antie- 
tam Creek, near Sharpsburg, where one of the bloodiest 
battles of the war was fought. Some of the regiments lost 
more than half of their men. In that one day Lee lost about 
eleven thousand men and McClellan about twelve thou- 
sand. Both sides claimed the battle as a victory, but neither 
side had, in fact, won it. Neither was willing to attack the 
other the next morning, and neither ran away from the 
other. They lay facing each other for twenty-four hours 
without firing a gun. Then Lee quietly withdrew unmo- 
lested to the Potomac and crossed it. But while this en- 
counter was what is called a drawn battle so far as the fight- 
ing was concerned, it put an end to Lee's invasion of Mary- 
land and Pennsylvania, and was to that extent, at least, a 
success for the Federal cause. 

The Emancipation Proclamation. — The anti-slavery 
people in the North bitterly censured Lincoln for not doing 
something to put an end to slavery. His position was a 
difficult one. His purpose was simply to save the Union 
at all hazards. He felt that to do this he must respect the 
rights and opinions of the border State slave holders, who 
were lending loyal service to the Union cause. Ever since 
the beginning of the war slaves had been taking refuge 
with the Northern armies, and in some cases they had been 
given back to their masters when claimed by them. Gen- 
eral Butler, in command at Fort Monroe, had refused 



332 THE CIVIL WAR 

to give up negroes in this way. In time of war all goods 
which may aid the enemy are seized as "contraband of war." 
Butler contended that as negroes were property which could 
be used in fortifying and otherwise in aid of the enemy's 
cause they also were contraband of war. After that negro 
refugees were everywhere called "contrabands." 

Lincoln had no authority under the Constitution to set 
the negroes free. It was only as a war measure that he 
could justify himself in doing so, and he did not think that 
it would be a helpful war measure to proclaim a thing of 
that kind at a time when the Union armies were being 
everywhere defeated. But when Lee retired to Virginia, 
after the battle of Antietam, the situation was changed, and 
on September 22 Lincoln issued a proclamation declar- 
ing that after Januar}^ i, 1863, all the slaves in those 
States, and parts of States, which should be then in rebel- 
lion should be free. He also announced that he would 
ask the next Congress to ofifer pecuniary aid to slave hold- 
ers living in States not in rebellion who should voluntarily 
free their slaves. When the day fixed upon came (January 
I, 1863), Lincoln issued a second proclamation, declaring 
free all the slaves in those States and parts of States which 
were then resisting the L^nion. 

The Battle of Fredericksburg. — McClellan did not pur- 
sue Lee when the Confederates recrossed the Potomac, 
after the battle of Antietam, nor did he interfere with him 
in any vigorous way after he had settled down to repair 
the damage suffered in the campaign. McClellan was, 
therefore, removed from command, and General 
Burnside took his place at the head of the army 
of the Potomac. Burnside decided to advance 
' upon Richmond by way of Fredericksburg, and 
^ with that in view posted his army on the Rappa- 
hannock, opposite that city. Lee placed him- 
A. E. Burnside ^^jf ^^^ ^ jj^^^ ^f j^jjjg \^qI^[^-^^ the town. Burn- 
side threw a bridge of boats across the river, and on Decem- 
ber 13, 1862, attacked Lee in his works. 




FROM THE SECOND MANASSAS TO MURFREESBORO 333 

Again and again the gallant fellows charged up Maryes 
Heights, only to be mowed down by a fire that nothing 
could withstand. The defeat of the Federals was complete, 




Battle of Fredericksburg 

and it brought a bitter disappointment to the North, where 
there was serious fear that European countries, in view of 
repeated Confederate victories, might insist on interfering 
in behalf of the South. 
Murfreesboro. — The in- 
vasion of Kentucky by 
Bragg and Kirby Smith, 
in 1862, failed of its pur- 
pose of capturing Cincin- 
nati and Louisville. Buell 
met Bragg at Perryville, 
Kentucky, where an in- 
decisive battle was fought 
October 8. Bragg and 
Smith then left the State. 
Rosecrans, who had re- Confederate invasion of Kentucky 




334 THE CIVIL WAR 

pulsed a Confederate attack on Corinth (October 3 and 4), 
was now placed in command of Buell's army. He met the 
Confederates at Murfreesboro,and there a battle was fought 
on December 31, 1862, and January 2, 1863. On the first 
day the Federal forces were driven back, and were only 
saved from complete defeat by the prowess of Sheridan 
and Thomas, but on January 2 Rosecrans made a success- 
ful advance, and Bragg retreated. Both armies were se- 
verely crippled, but neither had distinctly conquered the 
other. Thus ended the second year of the war. 

Summary. — i. After McClellan was driven to James River, the 
Federal forces in the Valley were brought to Washington, and General 
Pope advanced to the Rappahannock. Jackson threatened this force, 
and to strengthen it McClellan's army was withdrawn from the neigh- 
borhood of Richmond. Lee's entire army then joined Jackson, and 
fought the second battle of Manassas, or Bull Run, on the 29th and 
30th of August, in which the Federal army was driven back and Wash- 
ington seemed in danger. Pope was removed from command and 
McClellan reinstated. 

2. Lee then marched into Maryland, capturing Harpers Ferry, 
with about 12,000 prisoners. McClellan met him on Antietam Creek, 
near Sharpsburg, where one of the bloodiest battles of the war was 
fought on the 17th of September. The battle resulted in victory for 
neither side, but after waiting for twenty-four hours, Lee retired into 
Virginia. 

3. In September, after the Battle of Antietam, Mr. Lincoln issued 
his first emancipation proclamation, and at the beginning of the next 
year he issued the final one. 

4. As McClellan did not pursue Lee from Antietam or offer battle, 
he was removed, and the command was given to General Burnside. 
Burnside advanced to Fredericksburg, where Lee met him, and in a 
great battle, on December 13, 1862, defeated him with great slaughter. 

5. During the autumn of 1862 a Confederate army under Bragg and 
Kirby Smith invaded Kentucky and threatened Louisville and Cincinnati, 
but was checked by Buell at Perryviile, Kentucky, in October. 

6. Rosecrans succeeded Buell, and on December 31 and January 2 
fought a great battle at Murfreesboro, Tennessee, after which Bragg 
retired. 

Collateral Reading. — Rhodes's " History of the United States," IV., 
131, 121-131, 134-136, 139-155, 193-198, 219-220. Pollard's "The Lost 
Cause," 307-309, 348-351- 



FROM CHANCELLORSVILLE TO LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN 335 

CHAPTER L 

FROM CHANCELLORSVILLE TO LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN 

The Battle of Chancellorsville. — In the Spring of 1863, 
General Hooker, who had succeeded Biirnside in command 
of the Army of the Potomac, had one hundred and thirty 




Battle of Chancellorsville 



thousand men, while Lee had only about sixty thou- 
sand. Hooker sent a part of his army down the river to 
cross below Lee's position, and threaten his right flank. 
At the same time he moved with the greater part of his 
army up the river, and crossed into a tangled country 
known as the Wilderness. Having crossed the river, he 
pushed forward to a point called Chancellorsville, hoping 
thus to place himself in the rear of Lee's left flank. 

But, leaving ten thousand men to hold the works at Fred- 
ericksburg, Lee had marched to meet Hooker, at Chancel- 



336 



THE CIVIL WAR 



lorsville. There he took a desperate risk. With less than 
fifty thousand men against about one hundred and twenty 
thousand he determined to divide his army in the presence 
of his enemy. He sent Stonewall Jackson with a part of 
the army to march secretly around Hooker's right fiank, 
and fall upon his rear, while he himself, with the remainder 
of his force, should hold Hooker in check in front. 

On the evening of May 2, Jackson delivered his blow 
on the Federal right and rear, taking them completely by 
surprise, and driving them before him until dark. After dark 
Jackson was by mistake shot by his own men, and died a 
few days later. On the next day the battle was resumed. 
Stuart, commanding Jackson's force, pushed his way over 
all obstacles, and joined Lee where that General w^as fiercely 
assailing Hooker's front. 

At the end of the second day Hooker was badly defeated, 
and his army was driven back in confusion to the river. 
His losses amounted to about eighteen thousand men. Lee 
had lost about thirteen thousand. Hooker recrossed the 

river. Thus for the fifth 
time a great campaign 
against Richmond had 
been brought to 
naught. 

Gettysburg. — Having 
overthrown Hooker, 
Lee decided to make 
another bold move 
northward as he had 
done after the second 
battle of Bull Run. He 
advanced to the Poto- 
mac, crossed it, and 
pushed forward into 
Pennsylvania. Hooker 
followed him, cover- 
ing Washington as he 







10 20 30 40 60 00 



War in the East, 1863 



FROM CIIANCELLORSVILLE TO LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN 337 



marched. During this march, Hooker was reheved from 
command at his own request, and General George G. Meade 
succeeded him. 

Portions of the two armies met on July i, 
1863, near the little town of Gettsysburg, 
Pennsylvania. There the greatest battle of 
the war w^as fought on that day and the two 
days following. During the first day the Con- 
federates had the advantage. During the night 
of that day and the next morning, the whole 
of the two armies gathered there. Meade 
entrenched himself on a line of hills called Cemetery Ridge, 
where Lee assailed him on July 2. The Confederates 




George G. Meade 











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Battle of Gettysburg 



gained ground, but failed to dislodge the Federals. On 
July 3 Lee sent General Pickett wath fifteen thousand men 
to assault the Union line. These brave fellows marched 
steadily for nearly a mile across an intervening valley which 



338 THE CIVIL WAR 

was swept by Federal cannon, then rushed up the hill in 
face of a deadly fire of musketry, pausing but for a moment 
to " mass for a final plunge.'' When they reached the top, 
a hundred of them leaped over a stone wall which formed 
the Union line of defense at this point, and captured, and for 
a minute held, some Federal cannon, planting their battle 
flags on Cemetery Ridge. But the storming column was 
not supported, and it was soon driven back with terrible 
carnage. Thus ended the three days' battle of Gettysburg. 

The losses in killed, wounded, and missing, at Gettys- 
burg were about twenty-three thousand on the Union side, 
and over twenty thousand on the Confederate side. The 
battle over, Lee lay still throughout the 4th of July, neither 
side caring to assail the other. Then he slowly retreated 
to the Potomac. There floods detained him for a time, but 
Meade did not attack him. 

The Siege of Vicksburg. — The capture of Island Number 
Ten, which led to the fall of ]\Iemphis, together with the 
capture of New Orleans by Farragut, had left the Confed- 
erates in control of only that small part of the ]\Iississippi 
River which lies between Vicksburg and Port Hudson. 
To reduce those two strongholds was to open the river 
from its source to its mouth to Federal fleets, thus cutting 
the Confederacy in two. Grant had undertaken this task 
and had found it one of extreme difficulty. 

Vicksburg was built upon high bluffs, overlooking the 
river. Its front bristled with cannon, and was seamed with 
fortifications. Grant wanted, if possible, to place his forces 
below the city where the ground was more favorable for 
a campaign. But to do that he must get past the city and 
its batteries, a thing which seemed impossible. 

At last he marched his army over muddy roads, on the 
west side of the river, to a point below Vicksburg. But the 
river itself still lay between him and the point he wished to 
gain, and moreover it was impossible to carry provisions 
enough for the feeding of the men over the roads by which 
he had marched. He therefore ordered a fleet of gunboats 



FROM CHANCELLORSVILLE TO LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN 339 

and vessels loaded with supplies to take the risk of running 
past the Vicksburg batteries during the night. The fleet 
succeeded in passing the town, and reaching Grant's posi- 
tion below, where the boats were used to ferry the armies 
across. 

Grant boldly cut loose from all his communications, and 
pushed forward into the country, falling upon every Con- 
federate detachment, and defeating one after another before 
they could unite for resistance. Within nineteen days he 
had crossed the Mississippi, marched one hundred and 
eighty miles through a difficult country, fought and won 
five battles, and placed his army in rear of Vicksburg, into 
which he had driven a Confederate army of more than thirty 
thousand men, under General Pemberton. On May 22 he 
tried to take Vicksburg by assault, but failed. He then 
began a regular siege. 

Inside Vicksburg the situation was terrible. The town 
had to endure- a constant bombardment and food was very 
scarce. Women and children were forced to live in caves 
dug in the cliffs, in order to escape the shells. 

On July 4, 1863, the next day after the battle of Gettys- 
burg, Vicksburg surrendered. So much was Grant im- 
pressed with the courage and endurance the Southerners 
had displayed that by his orders not a cheer was given by 
the conquerers as the Confederates marched out prisoners 
of war, while one division of Grant's army went further and 
shouted a hurrah for " the gallant defenders of Vicksburg." 
A few days after the fall of Vicksburg, Port Hudson sur- 
rendered. The Confederacy was cut in two. 

Draft Riots in New York. — After the first enthusiasm of the 
war wore off it was difficult, both North and South, to fill 
up the armies with volunteers. Early in the war the Con- 
federate government had passed a conscription law, calling 
into the army all the men in the South who were fit to 
fight. At the North volunteering had been encouraged by 
offering large bounties in money to those who would enlist; 
but even this device was not sufficient, and in the summer of 



340 



THE CIVIL WAR 




1863 it was necessary to resort to a draft — that is to say, 
drawing by lot the names of those who were required to 
serve. The draft was resisted in New York by great mobs 
composed largely of foreigners. These mobs wrecked the 

drafting offices, hanged 
some negroes, and so far 
disturbed the peace that 
it was necessary to put 
them down by armed 
force, with some loss of 
hfe. 

Morgan's Raid. — In 
July, 1863, the Confed- 
erate General John 
Morgan, with a strong 
body of cavalry, made 
a great raid through 
Tennessee and Ken- 
tucky into Indiana and 
Ohio, tearing up rail- 
roads, burning bridges, and destroying factories. After 
doing much damage and causing great alarm, his force was 
in part captured, while the rest of it was dispersed. 

The Battle of Chicka- 
mauga. — After the fall of 
Vicksburg the next im- 
portant point which it was 
necessary to secure in the 
West was Chattanooga, 
Tennessee. That town 
was a railroad center, 
which commanded east- 
ern Tennessee, where the 
people generally were of 
Union sentiments. Gene- 
ral Rosecrans maneuvered 
the Confederates out of 



One of Morgan's raiders 



TE^lNESSEE 



O J^y G I A 



,/ (J . I t ^ 10 



Vicinity of Chattanooga 



FROM CHANCELLORSVILLE TO LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN 34I 




Tennessee in Jnly and Augnst, and finally seized upon Chat- 
tanooga without a struggle. He made the mistake of sup- 
posing that the Confederates under Bragg were retreating, 
and he hastened his men through the mountain passes in 
pursuit. Bragg turned upon him and fought the battle of 
Chickamauga on September 19 and 20. 

In this battle the Confederates broke through the Union 
line and drove the right wing of the Federal army back in 
confusion to Chattanooga. General Thomas, in command 
of the left wing, held his own, however, and saved the day 
from being so disastrous a defeat as it had 
seemed to be to Rosecrans when he left the 
field with the rest of his army. Rosecrans 
fortified himself at Chattanooga, and Bragg 
besieged him there, occupying the command- 
ing heights of Lookout Mountain and Mis- 
sionary Ridge, thus cutting ofT supplies in part 
from the Union army. 

The Battles Near Chattanooga. — On October 
23 Grant arrived at Chattanooga. His first 
care was to open a way for obtaining supplies, 
time Bragg detached twenty thousand of his men under 

Longstreet to besiege 
Burnside at Knoxville. 
Sherman had been ordered 
to Chattanooga with his 
army, and arrived there 
on the night of November' 
23. During that day 
Thomas had driven the 
Confederates back a mile 
further from Chattanooga. 
On the 24th Hooker forced 
his way across the north 
end of Lookout Mountain. 
On the 25th the Federal 
Ulysses S. Grant (1864) armies took Missionary 



James Longstreet 



About that 




342 THE CIVIL WAR 

Ridge. The Confederates were driven back on all sides, and 
retired into Georgia. 

Sherman's Raid. — In February, 1864, Sherman marched 
from Vicksburg across the State of Mississippi, destroying 
railroads, engines, bridges, and the like, so that Chattanooga 
might be safe from attacks from that quarter. The only 
part of the Confederacy which was now able to offer any 
resistance lay south of Fredericksburg, in Virginia, and 
east of Dalton, in Georgia. General Johnston was at Dalton 
with seventy-five thousand men, and Lee lay upon the Rap- 
pahannock with sixty thousand. 

Grant in Command. — In March, 1864, Grant was made 
Lieutenant-General and placed in command of all the 
armies of the Union. 

Summary. — i- In the spring of 1863, General Hooker, with the Army 
of the Potomac, moved against Lee by way of the Wilderness, but 
was badly defeated at Chancellorsville (]\Iay 2 and 3). 

2. Lee at once made a second invasion of the north, which resulted 
in the great battle of Gettysburg, July I, 2, 3. 

3. The Confederates held only that part of the Mississippi River 
between Vicksburg and Port Hudson. Grant was sent to take Vicks- 
burg. After many fruitless attempts the place at last surrendered to 
him on the 4th of July. Port Hudson fell shortly afterward. 

4. In the summer of 1863 bloody draft riots occurred in New York 
city, and the Confederate General, John Morgan, made a great raid 
across the Ohio River into Ohio and Indiana, doing much damage. 

5. In September Rosecrans attacked the Confederates under Bragg 
at Chickamauga, near Chattanooga, and was badly defeated. He re- 
tired to Chattanooga, where Bragg besieged him. 

6. In October Grant was sent to Chattanooga to take command, 
and on the 24th and 25th were fought the battles of Lookout Moun- 
tain and Missionary Ridge, which forced the Confederates back into 
Georgia. 

7. In February, 1864, Sherman made a raid through Mississippi, 
destroying railroads, bridges, etc. 

8. In March, 1864, Grant was made Lieutenant-General and placed 
in command of all the Federal armies. 

Collateral Reading.— Rhodes's " History of the United States," 
IV., 257-264, 304-318, 396-407. Pollard's "The Lost Cause," 372-276, 450- 
452, 456-457- 



BATTLE OP" THE WILDERNESS TO SHERIDAN S RIDE 343 

CHAPTER LI. 

FROM THE BATTLE OF THE WILDERNESS TO SHERIDAN'S 

RIDE 




SCALE OF MILES t 



Grant's campaign against Rich- 
mond 



The Wilderness, Spottsylvania, and Cold Harbor. — In the 
campaign of 1864 it was Grant's chief purpose to crush 
Lee's army. He directed 
Sherman and others in the 
West to carry on campaigns 
there, which should prevent 
the sending of troops from 
that quarter to reenforce 
Lee. He even sent Canby 
from New Orleans to 
threaten Mobile, and, in 
short, wherever in the South 
or West there lay a Confed- 
erate force which might be 
sent to Lee, Grant ordered 
some movement which 

would fully occupy that force and keep it where it was. 
Having thus provided against the strengthening of Lee's 
army, he set out to crush it in the field. 

Early in May he crossed the Rapidan into the Wilder- 
ness, where Hooker had been defeated at Chancellorsville a 
year before. Lee instantly marched to meet him, and a 
fierce struggle ensued amid the tangled thickets of that 
wild land. 

During the night of the 7th Grant marched to his left and 
took position at Spottsylvania Court House. There again 
Lee met him, and fighting continued fiercely from the 8th 
to the 1 2th of May, with heavy losses but with no decisive 
result. On the nth Grant sent to Washington his famous 
message, " I propose to fight it out on this line if it takes 
all summer." On the iSth of May he again assailed the 

21 — Egg. Hist. 



344 THE CIVIL WAR 

Confederate entrenchments, but failed to carry them. He 
then moved again to the left, and gradually pushed his way 
southward until he reached Cold Harbor, near the Chick- 
ahominy. On June 3 he made a tremendous assault upon 
Lee's works, and was repulsed with terrific slaughter, hav- 
ing infficted almost no damage upon Lee. 

Finding it impossible to break through Lee's defenses at 
this point, he pushed on southward, crossed James River, 
and sat down before Petersburg, which lies twenty-two 
miles due south of Richmond. Here both armies fortified, 
and the greatest siege in all the war began. In this cam- 
paign from the Wilderness to Petersburg, Grant had lost 
nearly sixty thousand men, or nearly as many as the whole 
of Lee's army. He v/as heavily reenforced at Petersburg, 
and for more than eight months the two armies fought each 
other continually night and day. 

The Petersburg Mine. — The lines of the two armies at 
Petersburg were pushed nearer and nearer to each other as 
the summer went on, until at last at one point they were less 
than fifty yards apart. There the Federals dug under the 
Confederate works and filled a great cavern with gun- 
powder. This was exploded about daylight on July 30, 
and a large Federal force rushed into the great hole, or 
" crater," as it was called. The explosion had blown up 
about two hundred feet of the Confederate works, making a 
gap through which the Federals hoped to force their way 
and reach Petersburg. The attack was badly managed, 
however, and resulted in the killing and capturing of a great 
number of Federal soldiers, after which the Confederates 
reestablished their lines. 

Early's Raid into Maryland. — Meanwhile Lee had detached 
a part of his small army and sent it under General Early to 
the Shenandoah Valley. Early defeated such Union troops 
as stood in his way, crossed the Potomac into Maryland, and 
on July II, 1864, marched upon the fortifications of Wash- 
ington. 

There was great alarm in the North at this time. Grant's 



BATTLE OF THE WILDERNESS TO SHERIDAN'S RIDE 345 







SCALE OF MILES 




j^lA^ 



Early's raid into Maryland 



campaign was re- 
garded as thus far 
unsuccessful, and the 
South seemed 
stronger than ever 
to persons ignorant 
of actual conditions. 
So great was the 
alarm, and so much 
weakened was the 
popular confidence in 

the government, that the paper currency of the country- 
fell to about thirty-eight cents on the dollar in gold. 

After some fighting, Early fell back through the Shenan- 
doah Valley. Late in July he turned upon the Union 
troops which were following him, drove them back across 
the Potomac, and sent a body of cavalry into Pennsylvania 
to burn the town of Chambersburg. 

In August Grant sent General Sheridan* to the Shenan- 
doah Valley to deal with Early. 
In September Grant visited 
Sheridan there, and gave him 
his orders in the two words, 
" Go in." Sheridan went in. 
He defeated Early at Winches- 
ter, September 19, and at Fish- 
ers Hill, September 22. On 
October 19, however, while 
Sheridan was absent, the Con- 
federates routed his army at 
Cedar Creek. Hearing the fir- 
ing twenty miles away, Sheri- 
dan made his famous ride. 
About four miles from the bat- 
tlefield he met his fleeing men, rallied them, led them back 
into the fight, and changed the defeat into a victory. 

* For biography, see Appendix. 




Philip H. Sheridan 




346 THE CIVIL WAR 

The "Alabama." — Early in the war the Con- 
federates had sent out a number of ships to 
prey upon the commerce of the United States. 
The most famous of these was the " Ala- 
bama." She was built in England, and suf- 
fered to sail in spite of the remonstrances of 
the government at Washington, Her com- 
mander, Captain Raphael Semmes, was a 

_ , , „ master of the art of sailing. This ship did 

Rapnael Semmes ? , , . 

enormous damage, capturmg and burnmg 

nearly, sixty vessels. At last, on June 19, 1864, a spirited 

battle was fought between her and the United States ship 

" Kearsage," near Cherbourg, France. The action resulted 

in the sinking of the Southern ship. Her officers and crew 

were picked up by an English yacht and escaped. 

Summary. —I- In the spring of 1864 Grant set out to crush Lee's 
army in the field. Early in May he crossed the Rapidan, and after 
fighting the battle of the Wilderness moved to Spottsylvania Court 
House, thence on to Cold Harbor, and finally sat down before Peters- 
burg, after almost continual battling for a month. 

2. At Petersburg, July 30, the Federals exploded a great mine 
under the Confederate works and pushed a large force into the hole 
thus created. These failed in their purpose to force their way through 
into Petersburg, and great numbers of them were slaughtered. 

3. Earlier in July Lee had sent a force under Early into Maryland 
and nearly to Washington. Early returned to the Valley, and being 
pursued fell upon his pursuer, drove him back across the Potomac, and 
sent his cavalry to burn the town of Chambersburg, in Pennsylvania. 

4. Sheridan was sent into the Valley to deal with Early. He de- 
feated him in two battles, but a little later Early fought and was getting 
the best of his army while Sheridan was absent. Then it was that 
Sheridan made his famous ride, rallied his troops, assailed Early, and 
completely defeated him. 

5. On the 19th of June, 1864, the United States Ship " Kearsarge " 
destroyed the Confederate cruiser " Alabama," near Cherbourg, France. 

Collateral Reading. — Rhodes's " History of the United States." 
IV., 440-447, 466-467, 496-505, 518-522, 526-527, 536-537; Cooke's "Life of 
General Robert E. Lee," 396-399 ; Pollard's " The Lost Cause," 434-438. 



THE TAKING OF ATLANTA TO THE END OF THE WAR 347 



CHAPTER LII 



FROM THE TAKING OF ATLANTA TO THE END OF THE WAR 

Sherman Takes Atlanta. — Acting under Grant's general 
direction, Sherman carried on a campaign in the West with 
a vigor equal to that which 
Grant was himself showing in 
Virginia. Little by little Sher- 
man forced back the Confed- 
erates under Joseph E. John- 
ston, the two armies fighting 
each other at every step. 
There were battles at Resaca, 
May 14 and 15; at Dallas, 
May 25 and 28, and at Kene- 
saw Mountain, where Sher- 
man was repulsed with heavy 
loss on June 27. Johnston 
continued to fall back and 
Sherman continued to follow 
him all the way to Atlanta. 

In the meanwhile President Davis had removed Johnston 
from command and put General John B. Hood in his stead. 

Hood attacked Sherman sharply 
several times, but without success. 
Sherman drove him into Atlanta, 
and threw a part of his own force 
to the south of that city to destroy 
the railroads there. This com- 
pelled Hood to retire from the 
town, and Sherman occupied it 
September 2, 1864. In this one 
hundred miles of marching and 
fighting, from Chattanooga to At- 




William Tecumseh Sherman 




SCALE OF MILES 



Sherman's 



campaign at the 
West 



lanta, each side had lost about 
thirty thousand men. 



348 



THE CIVIL WAR 



Hood turned about and marched northward, destroying 
railroads and trying to cut off Sherman's supplies. He 
hoped thus to draw Sherman back from Atlanta, but after 
following him long enough to be sure that Hood was going 
to Tennessee, Sherman returned to Atlanta and sent heavy 
reenforcements to General Thomas, who had been sent to 
hold Nashville. 

Farragut Takes the Mobile Forts. — On August 5, 1864, 
Admiral Farragut ran his fleet past the forts which defended 




Farragut in Mobile Bay 



Mobile Bay. A fierce fight ensued with the Confederate 
gunboats and the ironclad Tennessee. One of Farragut's 
ships was sunk by an exploding torpedo. But in the end he 
won the day, and though he did not capture the city he com- 
pletely closed its way to the sea. 

Lincoln Reelected. — There had been great discouragement 
in the North during. the summer of 1864. Early had threat- 
ened Washington, Sherman had seemed to be making but 
slow progress toward Atlanta, and Grant had not achieved 



THE TAKING OF ATLANTA TO THE END OF THE WAR 349 



a success in the East equal to his victories in years gone by 
in the West. But the fall of Mobile forts, the taking 
of Atlanta, and Sheridan's brilliant success in the Shenan- 
doah Valley put a new face on affairs. The people began 
to see that the war was drawing to a close. The Democrats 
nominated McClellan for President, and some discontented 
Republicans named 
Fremont as their 
candidate, but when 
election day came 
Lincoln was chosen, 
with Andrew John- 
son* as Vice Presi- 
dent. 






5R, jGy%s^j^\ ^^il;. 







SCALE OF MfLES 



10 20 30 40 50 



The war in 1865 

The March to the Sea. — 

After resting his army at 
Atlanta, Sherman, in con- 
sultation with Grant, de- 
cided upon one of the 
boldest movements of the 
war. With sixty thou- 



sand men he cut himself loose from his communications 
with the North, and set out to march to Savannah, living 
on the country as he went. 

At last he appeared at Savannah, stormed and captured 
the fort that d'efended it on December 13, and before 
Christmas was in possession of the town. On January 15, 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



350 THE CIVIL WAR 

1865, Fort Fisher, North CaroHna, was bombarded by a 
Federal fleet and taken by assauh. This closed the port of 
Wilmington, the last Southern port of any consequence 
to the Confederacy. 

Hood and Thomas at Nashville. — Meanwhile Hood had 
marched into Tennessee soon after the fall of Atlanta. His 
plan was to defeat Thomas at Nashville, move eastward to 
the assistance of Lee at Richmond, and, after repulsing 
Grant, join Lee in a march southward against Sherman. He 
fell upon the Federal General Schofield at Franklin, twenty 
miles south of Nashville, November 30. Schofield held his 
works long enough to withdraw his army, and then joined 
Thomas at Nashville, Hood undertook to besiege the 
Federals there, but on December 15 Thomas attacked him, 
and after a two days' battle destroyed his army. 

Sherman Moves Northward. — As spring approached, Sher- 
man left Savannah, and, in execution of plans agreed upon 
between him and Grant, moved northward to form a union 
with the commanding general in Virginia. Columbia, the 
capital of South Carolina, was burned while he occupied it. 
Charleston fell next after Sherman's movements had cut it 
off. Johnston, with such Confederate forces as could be 
gathered from various quarters, opposed Sherman's ad- 
vance, but was defeated at Averysboro, North Carolina. 
On March 19, 1865, one of Sherman's columns was very 
nearly routed by Johnston at Bentonville, but Sherman's 
advance continued to be resistless. 

The End of the War. — Grant had now spent nearly a year in 
his effort to crush Lee's army. At Petersburg he continued 
to push his lines to the south and west, thus forcing Lee with 
his scanty numbers to stretch his lines in the same direction. 

As spring drew near, Grant concentrated heavy forces to 
the south of Petersburg, and sent Sheridan to destroy the 
railroads on which Lee depended for supplies. Lee sent 
forces to meet Sheridan, but they were defeated in the battle 
of Five Forks, April i, 1865. On the next day Grant pushed 
forward his whole army against the works at Petersburg, 



THE TAKING OF ATLANTA TO THE END OF THE WAR 35 1 

and carried them, driving Lee into a retreat which was 
hopeless from the beginning. On April 3 the Federals 
marched into Richmond. 

With what remained of his army Lee tried to retreat 
southward in the hope of joining Johnston and making a 
final stand. But Grant was behind him, on his left, and in 



i^mlHll '{ 


^ 


1 


k 




#*•***** 


1 


m 


n^iii't .jK^BBBS 


|. -,^^Mk 




» 






t 


r 



Robert E. Lee 

his front. His retreat was completely cut ofif, and at Appo- 
mattox he found himself surrounded while his men were 
starving. On the 9th of April he surrendered to Grant, who 
gave him most honorable terms and at once ordered that 
food should be issued to the starving Confederates. 

The war was now practically at an end. The remaining 
Southern armies laid down their arms when their generals 



352 THE CIVIL WAR 

heard of Lee's surrender. The North, with its open ports 
and its abundant manufactures, came out of the contest 
more prosperous than at its beginning, while the South was 
desolated and confronted with a prospect of long years of 
poverty, a prospect which was made worse by the fact that 
the labor system of that section was completely destroyed 
by the freeing of the slaves. In their efforts to restore their 
region to prosperity after the ruin and waste of war the 
Southerners manifested a courage and proud-spirited deter- 
mination as notable as their bravery in battle. 

What the War had Settled. — The war had settled forever 
the question of a State's right to withdraw from the Union. 
It had decided by the final test of arms that these States 
must forever remain members of one sovereign republic. 

It had also made an end of slavery, the one great influence 
which had divided the States, disturbed politics, and set the 
people of the two sections in antagonism to each other for 
generations past. To make this sure an amendment (the 
thirteenth) to the Constitution was adopted which declared 
that slavery should never exist within the United States or 
in any territory subject to this country's jurisdiction. 

The Assassination of Lincoln. — From the beginning to the 
end of the war President Lincoln had kept only one object 
in view. He wished to restore the Union and make it per- 
petual. He had directed the war, as he himself expressed it, 
" with malice toward none, and charity for all." Now that 
the war was over and the Union saved, it was his earnest 
and eager purpose to restore the old friendship between the 
sections as quickly and as completely as possible. His first 
act was to issue an amnesty proclamation which included 
nearly everybody in the South. 

Unhappily a crime was at this time committed in the 
name of the South, but without its sanction and greatly to 
its hurt, which interfered with the generous programme 
that Mr. Lincoln had marked out. On the night of April 
14, as Lincoln sat in a box in Ford's Theater, in Washing- 
ton, an erratic actor who had never been a Southern soldier 



THE TAKING OF ATLANTA TO THE END OF THE WAR 353 

or a Southern citizen, shot and mortahy vvoiinded the best 
friend that the South had among the pubHc men of the 
North. The assassin shot from behind and then leaped from 
the box to the stage, brandishing a dagger and profaned 
the motto of Virginia by crying aloud, " Sic semper tyran- 
nis." Running out through a stage door, he mounted a 
horse that was waiting for him and rode away into Virginia. 
A few days later he was shot and killed by those who had 
pursued him. Lincoln was removed to a house opposite 
the theater, and died the next morning. 

Great apprehension was aroused by the discovery that 
the murderous act had been planned by a company of con- 
spirators who intended on the same night to assassinate the 
members of the cabinet and General Grant, and one of 
whom actually assailed Mr. Seward, the Secretary of State. 
The conspirators were soon discovered, and were so insig- 
nificant in influence and character that the terror which 
Lincoln's death had inspired soon passed away. 

West Virginia. — The people in the northwestern part of 
the commonwealth of Virginia were opposed to secession. 
When this State joined the Confederacy many of these peo- 
ple entered the Union army, and soon the demand came in 
the western counties for the formation of a new State. 
Under our Constitution a new State cannot be formed from 
the territory belonging to a State without the consent of its 
legislature. The Legislature of Virginia was within the 
lines of the Confederacy, and was clearly opposed to the 
formation of a new State in the Union. To meet this diffi- 
' culty a new legislature was formed for the State of Virginia, 
'made up largely of people from the western counties. This 
legislature gave its consent to the division of the State 
of Virginia. The people in the counties named voted in 
favor of the proposed State. A constitution was framed 
and was submitted to Congress, and the State of West Vir- 
ginia was admitted to the Union on June 19, 1863. 

One other State, Nevada, October 31, 1864, was admit- 
ted during Mr. Lincoln's administration. 



354 THE CIVIL WAR 

Summary. — i. In the spring and summer of 1864 Sherman pushed 
southward to Atlanta, and entered that city September 2. 

2. General Hood, in command of the Confederates, moved into Ten- 
nessee, where Sherman had stationed Thomas with a strong force. In 
December these forces met before Nashville and Hood's army was de- 
stroyed. 

3. On the 5th of August, 1864, Admiral Farragut took the forts in 
Mobile Harbor, and destroyed the Confederate fleet there. 

4. After Hood moved northward from Atlanta, Sherman marched 
south through Georgia. He reached and took Savannah before Christ- 
mas. A little later Wilmington and Charleston, the last of the Confed- 
erate ports, were abandoned. 

5. As the winter waned Sherman moved northward to form a junc- 
tion with Grant in Virginia. Johnston, with a small army, contested 
every inch of the way, but could not stop the Federal advance. 

6. In the spring Grant massed his forces at Petersburg, and carried 
the works there April 2, 1865. This compelled the evacuation of 
Richmond, and sent Lee's army, without supplies, into a hopeless re- 
treat. On the 9th of April, at Appomattox Court House, Lee sur- 
rendered his starving men. The other Confederate forces soon after- 
ward surrendered, and the war was over. 

7. The war had established forever the principle that this Union is 
not to be dissolved. It had also made an end of slavery. 

8. The moment the war was over and the Union restored, President 
Lincoln set himself to reestablish friendship between the two sections. 
He issued an amnesty proclamation as his first act. But he was assassin- 
ated a few days after the surrender of Lee's army. 

9. West Virginia was admitted as a State June 19, 1863. 

Collateral Reading— Pollard's "The Lost Cause," S4I-S43, 577-5^- 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT 

EVENTS 

CHAPTER LIII 

AFTER THE WAR 



can be made of 
money spent by 



"What the Civil War had Cost. — Between the fall of Fort 
Sumter and the surrender of Lee more than six hundred 
thousand lives were lost by the war. In the South the de- 
struction of property was incalculable. In the North the 
waste of war had been great, and vast sums of money had 
been expended by the government. Much of this money 
was borrowed, and at the end of the war the nation owed 
no less than twenty-eight hundred and forty-five million 
dollars. No estimate 

the 

the 
South. The war has 
since cost the nation 
many hundreds of mil- 
lions of dollars in pen- 
sions. 

Disbanding the Union 
Army. — At the end of 
the war the United 
States had more than 
a million soldiers in its 
armies. These were 
paid ofif and sent home 
at the rate of three hundred thousand a month until only 
fifty thousand of them remained. Before the final break- 

355 




The last review of the 
army 



356 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

ing up a grand review of the armies was held in Washing- 
ton. The column of troops was so long that it required 
two days, May 23 to May 24, to pass the reviewing stand. 
The Confederate soldiers who had surrendered were re- 
leased on parole. They numbered about one hundred and 
seventy-five thousand. 

Paying the National Debt. — As soon as the soldiers were 
sent home and the expenses of the government reduced, 
the work of paying off the national debt was begun. Within 
less than a dozen years the debt was reduced nearly one half. 

The " Greenbacks." — In addition to the money it had bor- 
rowed by selling its interest-bearing bonds the government 
had also issued some hundreds of millions of paper notes, 
or " greenbacks " as they were called from their color. 
These notes were " legal tender," that is, the law compelled 
everybody to accept them at their face value in payment of 
debts. They w^ent up and down in value, measured by gold, 
according to the success or defeat of the national armies. 

At the end of the war the government was not able to 
redeem these promises to pay in gold or silver, and so they 
continued for many years to be worth less than their nomi- 
nal value. No gold or silver was used as money at that time 
because a gold dollar was worth more than a paper promise 
to pay a dollar, so long as that promise could not be kept. 
It was not until 1879 that the government held itself ready 
to redeem its notes in gold or silver. As soon as it could do 
that the notes became worth their face, and have continued 
to circulate as money. 

The First States Reorganized. — In 1863, while the war 
was yet in progress, the States of Arkansas, Tennessee, 
and Louisiana came completely into possession of the Fed- 
eral army, and Lincoln at once undertook to restore them 
to the Union. He issued a proclamation offering amnesty 
to all the people of those States, with some exceptions, who 
would swear allegiance to the Constitution and accept the 
Emancipation Proclamation. He also promised to recog- 
nize any State government which should be organized by 



AFTER THE WAR 



357 



voters who had thus taken the oath of allegiance, provided 
their number was one tenth of the whole number of voters 
in their States. The three States named above were re- 
organized under these conditions in 1864, but Congress 
refused to receive their Senators and Representatives. 

President Johnson's Policy. — When Johnson became Presi- 
dent, after Lincoln's death, he undertook to manage things 
in his own way, and 
presently a great quarrel 
arose between him and 
Congress. He had a plan 
of his own, which he 
called " My Policy," for 
the restoration of the 
Southern States to the 
Union. This policy did 
not please Congress. It 
did not provide so fully 
as Congress desired for 
the protection of the free 
negroes, or for other 
things which Congress 
wanted to guard. Con- 
gress, therefore, would 
not receive the Repre- 
sentatives of the States 

which Johnson had recognized, while Johnson vetoed every 
law made by Congress with regard to those States. One 
of these laws continued in power a government agency 
called the Freedman's Bureau, which had been established 
in 1865 for the protection of negroes in the South. An- 
other was a law giving negroes the same civil rights before 
the courts that white men had. Congress promptly passed 
these laws over the President's veto. 

The Fourteenth Amendment. — In June, 1866, Congress 
adopted the fourteenth amendment to the Constitution, and 
sent it to the States to be ratified. This amendment made 




Andrew Johnson 



358 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

citizens of the freed slaves, and forbade any State to deny 
them their rights as citizens. It provided, also, that the 
debts of the United States should all be paid, but that neither 
the general government nor any State government should 
assume or pay any of the Confederate debts. It was difficult 
to get this amendment ratified by the requisite number of 
States. In order to do that Congress decided not to re- 
admit any State to the Union until its legislature should 
accept the amendment. The Southern States generally 
refused, and Congress passed a reconstruction act over the 
President's veto in March, 1867. Under this act six South-^ 
ern States were restored to the Union in 1868, but 
Georgia, Virginia, Mississippi, and Texas refused to comply 
with the terms offered. 

The Tenure of Office Act. — The Constitution gives to the 
President the right to appoint and remove officers under the 
government. It was feared that Johnson would exercise 
this power by removing officers and appointing in their 
place others who would not enforce the new laws that had 
bee'n passed over his veto. To prevent this Congress, in 
1867, passed the Tenure of Office Act, which deprived the 
President of power to remove the higher officers of govern- 
ment without the consent of Congress. 

The Impeachment of the President. — In spite of this law, 
which he held to be unconstitutional, President Johnson 
undertook to remove the Secretary of War from his office. 
This caused great excitement, and the House of Repre- 
sentatives impeached the President. The case was tried by 
the Senate, as all impeachments are. Thirty-five Senators 
voted that he was guilty, and nineteen that he was not. As 
he could not be removed from office except by a two-thirds 
vote of the Senate, he continued in office. 

Maxunilliaxi in Mexico. — During the Civil War Napoleon 
III. of France and the Emperor of Austria set up an empire 
in Mexico in place of the republic, and made Maximillian, a 
brother of the Emperor of Austria, the ruler of that country. 
Our government protested against this as a violation of the 



AFTER THE WAR 



359 



Monroe doctrine, but no heed was paid to its protest. Soon 
after the war was over, however, the United States sent 
troops to the Mexican border, and in 1867 the French forces 
were withdrawn. Maximillian was caught by the Mexicans 
and shot, and the Mexican RepubHc was restored. 

The Purchase of Alaska. — In 1867 our government bought 
from Russia the territory called Alaska for the sake of its 
seals, gold, and timber. 

The Pacific Railroad. — When California and Oregon be- 
gan to till up with people a railroad across the continent 
was felt to be necessary, not only for purposes of trade and 
travel, but still more for purposes of national defense. The 
Pacific coast was separated from the rest of the country by 
thousands of miles of trackless wilderness and two great 
ranges of mountains. Should a public enemy assail the 
rich cities that were 
growing up on our 
western coast, no aid 
could be sent to them 
except by sea all the 
way rouind South 
America or across the 
Isthmus of Panama. 

Long before the 
Civil War this need 
was recognized and 
plans were laid to 
meet it. Wlien the 
Civil War came, 
bringing with it a se- 
rious danger of war with some foreign naval power, a rail- 
road across the continent was seen to be an absolute neces- 
sity. In order to secure it. Congress offered government 
bonds amounting to more than fiftv-five millions of dollars 
to those who should build it, besides giving them one half 
of all the land in a strip twenty miles wide along the line of 
the railroad. 







Completion of the Pacific railroad 



360 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

The line was finished, and the last spike — made of gold — 
was driven May 10, 1869. 

Gold, Silver, and New States. — The building of this rail- 
road caused a large growth of population in Nebraska and 
elsewhere along its line, and Nebraska was admitted to the 
Union as a State March i, 1867. In the meanwhile rich 
discoveries of gold and silver had been made in Colorado, 
Nevada, Idaho, Montana, and elsewhere ; these caused a 
great influx of population, and Nevada was admitted to the 
Union as a State October 31, 1864. Colorado, Montana, 
and Idaho were made Territories, and Arizona was sepa- 
rated from New Mexico. 

Nevada has hardly any agricultural resources, or re- 
sources of any kind except from its mines, and as these have 
become less and less productive the State has dwindled in 
population. In 1900 the State had only 42,335 inhabitants. 

Summary. — i. When the war ended all the soldiers of the Union 
except 50,000 were sent home. This reduced expenses and enabled the 
government to begin paying off the national debt. The Treasury notes, 
or greenbacks, rose in value, until in 1879 the government declared 
its readiness to redeem them in coin. From that time a government 
note has been worth one hundred cents on the dollar. 

2. After the war it was necessary to provide a way for the restora- 
tion of the seceding States to the Union. This gave much trouble, 
and led to a quarrel between the President ana Congress, and to the 
impeachment of the President. 

3. During this process of reconstruction a new amendment to the 
Constitution — the fourteenth — was adopted. 

4. During the Civil War the French and Austrians had set up an 
empire in Mexico with Maximillian for emperor. The United States 
now got ready to drive out this foreign force, and the French withdrew 
their troops. The emperor was captured and shot, and the Republic 
was restored. 

5. During the same year — 1867 — the United States bought Alaska 
from Russia. 

6. The building of the Pacific Railroad and the discovery of new gold 
and silver mines led to the admission of two new States and the peo- 
pling of rich Territories. 

Collateral Reading.— Andrews's " History of the United States," II., 
185-189. 



GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION 361 

CHAPTER LIV 
grant's administration 

The Election of Grant. — In 1868 General Grant was elected 
President by an overwhelming vote. He entered upon 
office March 4, 1869. The Civil War had ended three 
years before, but the country was still vexed with many 
questions growing out of it and out of the quarrels which 
had ensued between President Johnson and Congress. 

Three of the Southern States were still denied their place 
in the Union, and the South was much disturbed over the 
question of what should be done to manage the negroes 
there so that they might not bring harm to the public. 
There was still great bitterness, also, between many people 
in the North, and many in the South, and politicians on both 
sides, for selfish purposes, did all they could to stir up anger 
and hatred between the two sections. 

A large part of the people of the North were convinced 
that there could be no safety for the negroes in the South 
imless the right to vote was secured to them. On the other 
hand, the people of the South felt that nothing could be 
more dangerous than to make voters out of recently freed 
slaves who had neither education nor property, and who 
might, therefore, be easily used by designing politicians for 
evil purposes. 

The Fifteenth Amendment. — It was under these circum- 
stances that Congress in 1869 sent to the States for ratifica- 
tion a new amendment (the fifteenth) to the Constitution. 
The efYect of this amendment was to give votes to all the 
negroes in the South. In order to get back into the Union, 
Virginia, Mississippi, and Texas ratified this amendment, 
and were readmitted in 1870. In the same year the amend- 
ment became part of the Constitution. Georgia having been 
readmitted in 1868, all the States were now back in the 
Union. But the time of trouble was not yet past. 



362 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 



,.,.., .„l".l,|ill,'l,.,li,',T'.. , 

'fvW, , ,|||i iji, I I'T.A'l'iff 7i| 





Disturbances at the South. — The first effect of giving the 
negroes the right to vote was to create much disorder in 
those parts of the South where the negroes greatly out- 
numbered the whites. A good many poHticians from the 



grant's administration 363 

North, most of them men who could not have been elected 
to office in their own parts of the country, saw in this condi- 
tion of things a chance to put themselves forward. Many of 
these went South without any intention of living there per- 
manently or becoming a part of the community, but solely 
to get themselves elected to office and to make what they 
could out of politics. 

In several States of the South these men managed to 
control the negro vote and to make themselves masters 
of the State governments and legislatures. They voted 
away millions of dollars of public money in wasteful expen- 
ditures, threatening thus to bankrupt the States, and to 
increase taxation till property should become worthless. 
The white people tried at first to keep the negroes from 
voting by means of bribes and threats of not employing 
them. When this failed a secret society was organized 
called the Ku Klux Klan. Its object was to frighten the 
negroes and keep them from voting. The society became 
so lawless at last that Southerners aided in suppressing it. 
In the meanwhile government troops were sent to keep 
order in the Southern States. Little by little the better 
class of white people came into power again in most of the 
States during Grant's administration. But it was not until 
the end of his second term that the troubles in the South 
were allayed and the anger caused by them subsided. 

The Treaty of Washington. — In addition to our home ques- 
tions growing out of the war there were matters to be 
settled with Great Britain. Our government held Great 
Britain responsible for letting the " Alabama " and other 
Confederate cruisers sail out of her ports to prey upon 
American commerce. We demanded that Great Britain 
should pay for the damage done by those ships. At first 
Great Britain refused, but in 1871 the matter was adjusted 
by a treaty made at Washington in which the two coun- 
tries agreed to refer the case to a court of arbitration 
composed of five members, appointed one each by the 
United States, Great Britain, Italy, Switzerland, and Brazil. 



364 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 




Chicago after the fire 

This court met at Geneva, Switzerland, and decided the 
case in favor of the United States. It required Great 
Britain to pay us fifteen milHon five hundred thousand 
dollars as damages, the money to be used by the United 
States in paying our ship owners for their losses. 

There were two other questions in dispute between this 
country and Great Britain. One of them related to the 
boundary east of Vancouver Island, involving the title to a 
small group of islands. It was referred to the Emperor 
of Germany, who decided it in favor of the United States. 
The other related to the Canadian fisheries, and the arbi- 
trators chosen to decide it gave their verdict in favor of 
Great Britain, requiring the United States to pay to that 
country five million five hundred thousand dollars for fish- 
ing privileges on the Canadian shores. 

The Chicago and Boston Fires. — On October 8, 1871, 
a fire broke out in Chicago, which destroyed the best part of 
the city. Two hundred lives were lost, and two hundred 
million dollars worth of property was destroyed. In 
November of the next year a great fire occurred in Boston, 
destroying about eighty million dollars' worth of property. 



grant's administration 365 

With great energy and with phick that excited the admira- 
tion of the world, the two cities were quickly rebuilt. 

The Election of 1872. — Many things in Grant's administra- 
tion, especially its dealings with Southern questions, had 
displeased a considerable body of Republicans. These 
withdrew themselves from their party and set up a new 
party called Liberal Republicans. In 1872 they nominated 
Horace Greeley for President, and the Democrats in that 
year made no nominations of their own, but endorsed 
Greeley, though he had been a life-long antagonist of the 
Democratic party. This movement came to nothing, Grant 
being overwhelmingly reelected. 

The Credit Mobilier. — In the campaign of 1872 it was 
openly charged that a company called the Credit Mobilier 
of America, which was making vast sums out of the con- 
struction of the Pacific Railroad, had been giving shares 
of its stock to various persons in Congress and in the gov- 
ernment by way of inducing them to favor the company's 
schemes. The investigation that followed showed that 
some members owned stock in the company, but no one 
was convicted of conscious wrongdoing. 

Indian Wars. — In 1872 the government undertook to 
remove the Modoc Indians of southern Oregon to a new 
reservation. They refused to go, and when General Canby 
was sent to arrange the matterwith them they treacherously 
killed him. A war ensued, led on the part of the Indians by 
a chief called Captain Jack. It lasted nearly a year. Four 
years later another Indian war occurred. The Sioux had 
agreed to remove before January, 1876, to a reservation in 
Dakota, but they did not do so. When the troops tried 
to compel them to keep their promise they fled to the moun- 
tains near Big Horn River. There General Custer attacked 
them on June 25 with a regiment of cavalry, and as he was 
not supported by his second in command, Major Reno, he 
and all his men were slaughtered. The war was continued 
until the Indians were overcome by General Miles. 

The Panic of 1873. — For many years before 1873 men had 



366 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 




The Custer Massacre 



been building railroads in this country much faster than 
they were needed. Many of these roads did not earn 
enough to pay their expenses. Those who built them had 
done so with borrowed money, issuing great volumes of 
stock certificates and bonds, on much of which they could 
not pay the interest. This led in 1873 to a great financial 
panic, which was followed by hard times for several years 
afterwards. 

The Centennial Exhibition. — In 1876 a great World's Fair 
was held in Philadelphia to celebrate the one hundredth 
anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. One of 
its purposes was to show what progress Americans had 
made, and among the most notable new inventions exhibited 
there were the telephone and the electric light. 

A New State and the Census. — One State, Colorado, was 
admitted during Grant's administration. It entered August 
I, 1876, and is called " the Centennial State." The census 



HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR 



367 



of 1870 showed a population in the Union of 38,560,000. 
Every previous census had shown a gain of from 33 to 36 
per cent, in popu- 
lation during the 
decade. This cen- 
sus showed a gain 
of less than 25 per 
cent. This census 
is believed to have 
been very inaccu- 
rate, especially in 
its enumeration of 
the people at the 
South. But the 



'.' / ^••r*-:;i 



^Settled area in 1650 



(■.■.•...■■iDots indicate regions settled'^- 
1^-^^-^ between 1850 and 1 873 




Settled area in 1870 
falling off in growth was in part due to the Civil War. 



Summary. — i. During Grant's adminstration the country was still 
disturbed over questions arising out of the war, and especially over 
the question what to do about the negroes. It required several years 
to settle these matters. 

2. The disputes with Great Britain concerning the Alabama claims, 
the Canadian fisheries, and the northwest boundary were settled by 
arbitration. 

3. A war with the Modoc Indians occurred in 1872 and one with 
the Sioux in 1876. In the latter General Custer and his force were 
slaughtered before the Indians were subdued. 

4. A great financial panic occurred in 1873, and in 1876 the Centen- 
nial Exposition was held in Philadelphia. 

Collateral Reading.— Andrews's " History of the Last Quarter Cen- 
tury of the United States," I., 36-40, 88-92. II., 5-10, 186-188, 253-260. 



CHAPTER LV 

HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR 

The Election of 1876. — In 1876 the Republican candidate 
for President was Rutherford B. Hayes,* of Ohio, and the 
Democratic candidate was Samuel J. Tilden, of New York. 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



368 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 



The vote was so evenly divided between the two candidates 
that the result depended upon Louisiana, South Carolina, 

and Florida. All three 
of these States seemed 
to have voted for Til- 
den, and if their votes 
were counted for him 
he would be elected, 
but if counted for 
Hayes then Hayes 
would be President. 
In each of the three 
disputed States the 
ballots of the people 
were counted by a 
body called a "Re- 
turning Board." This 
board was authorized 
to throw out the en- 
tire vote of any county 
in wdiich voters were 
supposed to have been kept from the polls by force or by 
fear. In Louisiana and Florida the Democrats had strong 
majorities, but the Returning Board threw out enough 
votes to give those States to the Republicans. The Demo- 
crats disputed the legality of this, and so there were two sets 
of electors for these States, each set claiming to be the legal 
one. In Oregon, also, there was a similar dispute. 

This matter, of course, had to be settled by Congress 
before the electoral vote could be counted, and, as the 
Democrats had a majority in the Lower House, while the 
Republicans controlled the Senate, the two Houses could 
not agree. But at last the two Houses of Congress agreed 
to refer the matter to an electoral commission to be com- 
posed of five Senators, five Representatives, and five Jus- 
tices of the Supreme Court. The Senate and House each 
appointed its members of the commission. They also 




Rutherford B. Hayes 



HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR 



369 



--i^ ^ 



^ 



selected four of the five Judges, and theTse four chose the 
remaining one. The commission when complete consisted 
of eight Republicans and seven Democrats. By a vote of 
eight to seven it gave the disputed electoral votes to Hayes, 
and he was elected by a majority of one vote. 

The Nez Perce War.— One little Indian war occurred dur- 
ing this administration with the Nez Perce Indians of the 
far Northwest in 1877. The Indians retreated, fighting as 
they went for fifteen hundred miles, across Idaho and Mon- 
tana, but were finally forced to surrender. They killed no 
women or children in this war and did no scalping. 

The Railroad Strike of 1877. — In 1877 a great strike oc- 
curred among the men on the great railroads because of a 
question of wages. The strike 

spread throughout the North- --- ^, -"■ ^^ 

ern States. It was accom- 
panied by violence and riots 
at Pittsburg, Chicago, and St. 
Louis, and for a time the rail- 
road traffic of the country was 
very nearly stopped. At Pitts- 
burg much property was de- 
stroyed and many lives lost. 
The matter was adjusted in 
about two weeks and the 
trains were set going again. 

Financial Legislation. — In 
1873 a law was passed to 
regulate the coinage of money 
by the United States mint. 
Silver dollars were no longer 
in use, because the silver in 
such a dollar was at that time 
worth more than a dollar. In 
providing for the various 

coins the act did not provide for a silver dollar for use as 
money in this country. It ordered that small coins and the 




Railroad riot, Pittsburg 



370 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

trade dollar should be made of silver. The trade dollar 
had more silver in it than the old American silver dollar, 
and it was not intended to be used in this country at all. 
It was made in order to help our merchants in trading with 
China. In that country the standard money consisted of 
Mexican silver dollars, but the Chinese were willing to take 
our trade dollar instead. 

Not long after this great quantities of silver ore were 
discovered in the Rocky Mountain country, and silver as 
a metal fell in price, so that the trade dollar which had 
really been worth more than a gold dollar when it was 
coined, became worth much less. Many of the trade dol- 
lars had come home in the meanwhile, and people holding 
them could not pay debts with them as they were not legal 
money in this country. To correct this evil Congress passed 
an act requiring the government to redeem all trade dol- 
lars ofifered to the Treasury. 

In 1878 a new coinage act was passed. People who 
were interested in silver mines and people who believed that 
there was too little money in the country were anxious to 
have the government coin silver dollars as freely as it coined 
gold dollars. The act of 1878 did not provide for this, but 
it did provide that the government should coin a certain 
number of silver dollars each month. The President vetoed 
the bill, but it was passed over his veto. 

In 1875 an act was passed authorizing the Secretary of 
the Treasury to sell bonds of the government for coin, and 
directing him on and after January i, 1879, to redeem all 
greenbacks that should be presented to him with coin. 
This was done, and the greenbacks at once became worth 
their face in gold. 

The Mississippi Jetties. — The Mississippi River is very 
muddy. As it flows into the Gulf of Mexico it deposits 
great masses of mud upon the bottom, making the mouths 
of the river very shallow. This made it dif^cult for large 
ships to come up to New Orleans. In order to correct 
this difficulty Captain James B. Eads, a civil engineer, pro- 



HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR 



371 



posed to deepen one 
or more of the Mis- 
sissippi's mouths by 
extending the banks 
with artificial walls 
called jetties on each 
side of the stream 
out into the deep 
water of the gulf. 
This would increase 
the current of the 
stream at its shallow 
mouth, and force the 
water in passing out 
to deepen the chan- 
nel. He finished this 
work under orders of 
the government in 1879, 
had been only eight feet 
four years later, no less 
The Election of 1880 




James A. Garfield 




Chester A. Arthur 



and the result was that where there 

depth of water in 1875, there was, 

than thirty feet. 

— In 1880 certain friends of Gen- 
eral Grant tried to nomi- 
nate him for a third term 
as President. There is no 
law to prevent this, but 
ever since Washington and 
Jefferson refused to be 
elected for a third time, 
the people have held that 
no other man should have 
more than two terms. This 
sentiment was so strong 
that in spite of General 
Grant's great popularity 
the stubborn efforts of his 
friends to nominate him 
failed. The Republicans 



372 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

nominated and elected James A. Garfield,* of Ohio, with 
Chester A. Arthur,* of New York, for Vice President. 
Garfield had been President only four months when he was 
shot by a disappointed office seeker, July 2, as he stood in 
a railroad station in Washington. He died of the wound 
on September 19, and Vice President Arthur succeeded 
him. 

Civil Service Reform. — A sentiment had long been grow- 
ing in the country in favor of a change in our system of 
appointing men to minor offices. From Jackson's time on- 
ward it had been the custom of all Presidents to put men 
into office rather for party reasons than because of the 
men's fitness for the work to be done. 

In 1883 a bill was passed creating a civil service com- 
mission which was authorized to appoint examining boards 
for office seekers. This commission was to make such rules 
as it thought best and to examine all candidates for such 
offices as the President might see fit to place under the 
new system. 

This law relieved the President of a great responsibility 
and much trouble, by authorizing him to put into the 
" classified list " — that is the list of offices to be filled in this 
way — whatever offices he saw fit. This system, once es- 
tablished, has been greatly improved, and is now in very 
general use by States and cities, as well as by the national 
government. 

The Tariff of 1883. — In 1883 the government again found 
itself with more money coming in from taxes than it needed. 
This extra money could not be used in paying off more 
than had been paid of the national debt, because this debt 
was in the form of bonds held by the people, and the gov- 
ernment had agreed that these bonds should not be called 
in and paid before the dates named in them. A great many 
people wanted to go on holding these bonds and drawing 
interest on them. These people would not give them up 
unless they were paid a high premium for doing so. 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



HAYES, GARFIELD, AND ARTHUR 373 

In order to reduce the income of the government, there- 
fore, a new tarifif act was passed in 1883. It was intended 
to yield less revenue than had been furnished by the tariff 
formerly in force, but did not accomplish this purpose, be- 
cause it did not greatly change the import duties already 
in force. The question what to do with the surplus re- 
mained to be dealt with and it presently became an issue 
between the two parties. Both parties agreed that the sur- 
plus revenue must be somehow reduced, but they difTereJ 
widely as to how this ought to be done. 

Population. — By the census of 1880 the population was 
found to be 50,160,000. The increase during ten years had 
been about 30 per cent. It was largely due to an unusually 
large foreign immigration between 1870 and 1880. In no 
previous decade had so many immigrants come to the coun- 
try, but even this large influx was destined to be exceeded 
during the next ten years. 

Summary. — i. In 1876 there was a disputed presidential election, 
which was at last settled by an electoral commission, and Mr. Hayes, 
the Republican candidate, became President. 

2. During Mr. Hayes's administration arose the very interesting 
question of coining or not coining silver dollars. 

3. In 1879 the government resumed specie payments — that is, held 
itself ready to give coin for every Treasury note that might be offered 
for redemption. 

4. Eads's jetties at the mouth of the Mississippi were completed in 

1879. 

5. In 1880 James A. Garfield, of Ohio, was elected President, and 
Chester A. Arthur, of New York, Vice President. After four months 
in office Garfield was assassinated, and Arthur succeeded him as Presi- 
dent. 

6. In 1883 the first civil service reform law was passed by Congress. 
The system has since come into general use. 

7. In 1883 a new tarifif law was enacted for the purpose of cutting 
down the revenues of the government. It failed to reduce the revenue, 
and the question what to do with the surplus was left to be settled 
later. 

Collateral Reading. — Andrews's " History of the Last Quarter Cen- 
tury of the United States," I., 223-226, 26.V268, 303-306, 32g-3;i6. 



374 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 



CHAPTER LVI 



CLEVELAND S FIRST ADMINISTRATION 



The Election of 1884. — In 1884, the Democratic party- 
nominated for President, Grover Cleveland,* of New York, 

and the Republican 
candidate was James 
G. Blaine, of Maine. 
A great many Repub- 
licans, especially in 
New York, disliked 
Mr. Blaine, and 'refused 
to vote for him. Most 
of them strongly sup- 
ported Mr. Cleveland, 
instead. These voters 
called themselves In- 
dependents, but some 
one nicknamed them 
" M u g w u m p s," and 
that name soon came 
into popular use. Mr. 
Cleveland was elected 
and became the first Democratic President since the begin- 
ning of the Civil War. 

Civil Service Reform. — Cleveland was the first President 
elected since Jackson's time who did not follow Jackson's 
example in making a general change in of^ce holders. He 
governed himself by the civil service act of 1883 in making 
most of the minor appointments, and removals from the 
smaller of^ces were made only because of " offensive par- 
tisanship." In other words, wherever a capable man was 
in an office the duties of which were not political, he was 
left there so long as he did not use his office for political 

♦ For biography, see Appendix. 




Grover Cleveland 



CLEVELAND'S FIRST ADMINISTRATION 



375 



purposes. Wherever an office of a non-political kind was 
to be filled, the appointment was made as the result of an 
examination designed to find out which of the applicants 
for the place was best fitted to fill it. 

Labor Troubles. — The country was at this time very pros- 
perous and the employers of men in factories, on railroads 
and otherwise were rapidly building up great fortunes. The 
men whom they employed thought that they were not get- 
ting so large a share as they ought in this prosperity. They 
wanted better wages, and shorter hours of work. And in 
trying to get these they made many strikes. In order to 
meet these strikes the employers began importing laborers 
in great numbers from Europe who were willing to work 
for low wages in place of those who had " gone on strike." 
The laboring men demanded of Congress that it should 
protect them against this system of importing cheap labor 
from other countries, and in answer to their demand Con- 
gress passed, in 1885, just before Cleveland's inaugura- 
tion, an act which forbade any one to bring people into this 
country under a contract to employ them here as laborers. 

Strike Troubles in 1886. — In 1886, there were many strikes 
all over the country. There had come to exist here a class 
of men called anarchists, men who set themselves up against 
all law and all gov- 
ernments. The la- 
boring men of the 
country had no sym- 
pathy with anarchists, 
but the anarchists 
seized upon labor 
troubles as an excuse 
for doing violent 
things. During a 
strike in Chicago, in 
1886, the anarchists 
became very violent, 
and one day a dyna- 

23 — Egg. Hist. 





i 


1 


iin <"(^^ 


■ 


■ilii^i^S 








M 


1 


1 


1 


'm^ 


H9hhs 



Riot in Chicago 



3/6 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

mite bomb was thrown among a body of policemen, some 
of whom were killed by the explosion. A number of an- 
archists were tried, convicted, and some of them hanged. 

Two Acts Concerning the Presidency. — The Constitution 
provides that when a President dies or becomes disabled, 
the Vice President shall succeed him in office, and permits 
Congress to provide for the succession in case both Presi- 
dent and Vice President should die. Congress passed an 
act in 1886 providing that a member of the Cabinet shall 
succeed to the Presidency in such a case. 

To guard against another such difficulty as that which 
had arisen in the Hayes-Tilden election in 1876, Congress, 
in 1887, passed an act requiring each State to decide for 
itself, and according to its own laws, who should be con- 
sidered its properly chosen electors. 

The Interstate Commerce Law. — In the same year a law 
was passed called the Interstate Commerce Act. Its main 
purpose was to prevent railroads engaged in carrying freight 
and passengers between the several States, from making 
unjust discriminations in favor of one man, or firm, or town, 
and against others. It provided, also, for the regulation of 
Interstate Commerce in other ways, and created a commis- 
sion to carry out the law. 

Chinese Immigration. — During the time when the Pacific 
railroads were building and afterwards, many Chinese la- 
borers came to this country. They lived much more 
cheaply than Americans like to live, and were willing to 
work for much low'er wages than Americans demand. They 
did not become citizens of the country. The immigration 
of these people soon came to be regarded as a danger, not 
only to American workingmen but to the country itself. 
There seemed to be no limit to their numbers, and the steam- 
ship companies brought them across the ocean for very 
little money. Repeated attempts were made to check this 
influx, and in 1881 the treaty with China was so modified 
as to permit the United States to suspend the immigration 
of Chinese laborers. In accordance with this stipulation, 



CLEVELAND'S FIRST ADMINISTRATION 377 

Congress has, from time to time, passed laws which have 
practically stopped this immigration. 

The Tariff Question. — As we have seen, the revenues of the 
country had become dangerously large, and the attempt 
made by the tariff act of 1883 to reduce them had failed of 
its purpose. This brought forward the wdiole question of 
revenue and protective tariffs. Some of the people con- 
tended that the time had come when we should repeal all 
tariff duties beyond those which were needed to provide for 
the expenses of the government, thus cheapening goods and 
avoiding the danger of a surplus of money in the Treasury. 
Others contended that this would be a wrong to our manu- 
facturers and the working men. Their plan was to re- 
duce the surplus revenues by repealing internal tax laws, 
and by other means, including the raising of tariff duties to 
such a height as to exclude many foreign goods entirely, 
which, up to that time, had yielded revenue to the govern- 
ment. 

In his annual message to Congress in 1887, President 
Cleveland called attention to this subject, and urged the re- 
duction of the tariff duties. The Democrats favored this 
policy, and the Republicans opposed it. It became the 
chief issue in the election of 1888. 

Summary. — i- In 1884 Mr. Cleveland was elected President. 

2. During his administration the Contract Labor Law and the laws 
forbidding Chinese immigration were passed. Laws were passed regulat- 
ing presidential elections, and the succession to the Presidency in case of 
the death of President and Vice President. Still another important law 
regulated interstate commerce and prevented railroads from abusing 
their power. 

3. The most important question was how to prevent a surplus rev- 
enue. Mr. Cleveland urged a reduction of the tariff duties. The Re- 
publicans opposed this policy, and the Democrats favored it. It be- 
came the leading issue in the next election. 

CoUaterae Reading. — Andrews's " History of the Last Quarter Cen- 
tury of the United States," II., 91-95, 137-145, 114-117. 



378 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 



CHAPTER LVII 
Harrison's administration and Cleveland's second 

TERM 




The Election of 1888. — Cleveland was a candidate for re- 
election in 1888, but was defeated by the Republican can- 
didate, Benjamin Harrison,* 
of Indiana. 

Pensions. — The country 
was already paying pensions 
to four hundred and ninety 
thousand persons, chiefly on 
account of services rendered 
during- the Civil War. In 
President Harrison's first 
message to Congress, he ex- 
pressed himself as in favor of 
more liberal pensions to in- 
valid soldiers and to the wid- 
ows of soldiers. A bill was 
accordingly passed which 
raised the total to nine hundred and fifty thousand. 

Silver Legislation. — At this time our silver mines were pro- 
ducing more and more silver every year, and the price of that 
metal was continually falling lower. Many persons thought 
that this fall in its price was due to the fact that the govern- 
ment did not coin enough of it into money. Many people 
in both parties shared this view and wanted the government 
to coin all the silver offered to it just as it did with gold. 
Others who thought that this would be dangerous were still 
willing to increase the amount of silver coined each month. 
Accordingly, in 1890, Congress passed an act requiring the 
Treasury to buy four million five hundred thousand ounces 
of silver in each month, and to issue Treasury notes in pay- 

* For biography, see Appendix. 



Benjamin Harrison 



HARRISON'S ADMINISTRATION 379 

ment for it, these notes to stand on the same footing with 
the greenbacks, so far as paying debts with them was con- 
cerned. This act, as we shah presently see, failed to satisfy 
the silver men on the one hand, and threatened financial 
trouble on the other. Three years later it was repealed 
with the consent of men in both parties. 

The McKinley Tariff. — In 1890, a new tariff bill, framed 
by William McKinley,'^' of Ohio, was enacted. It increased 
the duties on such articles as are manufactured in the United 
States, in order to lessen their importation, and thus de- 
crease revenue while protecting American manufacturers. 
Still further to reduce revenues it lowered or abolished the 
duties on many articles such as are not made in this country. 
Finally, it gave to the President authority to regulate cer- 
tain of the duties on the principle of what is called reci- 
procity ; that is to say, it authorized him to lower the duties 
on goods imported from countries which granted like fa- 
vors to our products, and to charge duties on articles that 
had been left on the free list whenever the country from 
which they came put unreasonable duties on our products. 

New States and the Census. — Six new States came into the 
Union during Harrison's adminstration. North Dakota 
and South Dakota, November 2, 1889; Montana, November 
8, 1889; Washington, November 11, 1889; Idaho, July 3, 
1890; and Wyoming, July 10, 1890. The" two Dakotas, 
with the adjoining State of Minnesota, constitute one of 
the greatest wheat-growing regions of the world. They 
jhad been rapidly filling up with immigrants from the older 
States and with energetic farmers from the Scandinavian 
countries. Washington, too, is a rich agricultural State. 
The other three States are occupied chiefly by mines and 
great cattle ranches. By the census of 1890 the population 
of the country was found to be 62,620,000. 

The People's Party. — There was at this time a great deal 
of discontent among various classes of the people. There 
were people who wanted the government to issue more 

• For biography, see Appendix. 



38o 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 



greenbacks. There were others who wanted the govern- 
ment to coin silver without Hmit, and without regard to the 
great decHne which had occurred in the price of that metal. 
There were still others who wanted the government to own 
all the railroads and the telegraph and telephone lines, and 
others still who had various plans which they believed 
would better the condition of the people. All these ele- 
ments were gradually brought together into a new party 
called the People's Party, and later the Populists. 

The Election of 1892. — -The chief question before the coun- 
try in 1892 was that of the tariff. The Republicans nomi- 
nated Harrison for reelection, and declared themselves 
in favor of continuing and strengthening the McKinley 
tariff. The Democrats nominated Cleveland for the third 
time, and declared themselves in favor of a tariff for revenue 
only. The Populists nominated Tames Weaver, of Iowa, 
and declared in favor of free silver and the other changes 
above indicated. Cleveland was elected, but the People's 
Party had by this time become strong enough to secure 
twenty-two of the electoral votes. 

Foreign Affairs under Cleveland. — A revolution broke 
out in the Hawaiian Islands in 1893, and the queen was 
deposed. A pro- 
visional govern- 
ment was set up, 
and steps were 
taken to secure the 
annexation of the 
islands to the 

United States. A treaty to that effect 
was before the Senate for ratification 
when Cleveland came into office, but 
he withdrew it on the ground that the 
revolution in Hawaii had been largely helped by American 
sailors and marines. 

The United States had bought Alaska chiefly for the sake 
of the profit to be made by catching seals on some islands 




CLEVELAND'S SECOND TERM 38 1 

in Bering Sea near its coasts. The seals go to these islands 
every year for a time. But on their way back and forth 
they cross a stretch of open sea which is free to all nations. 
In 1886 Canadian sealing vessels began to kill the seals in 
the open sea, and there was danger that they might in this 
way exterminate them. A dispute arose between Great 
Britain and the United States over this question, and in 
1893 it was decided by arbitration. 

Another dispute with Great Britain, which seemed for a 
time to threaten war, arose in connection with the boundary 
line between the South American Republic of Venezuela 
and the British province of Guiana, lying along side it. 
Great Britain having refused to submit the question be- 
tween herself and Venezuela to arbitration, President Cleve- 
land sent a special message to Congress in 1895, urging 
that the United States should appoint a commission to de- 
cide the true boundary line, and should insist upon the 
rights of Venezuela. He held that under the Monroe Doc- 
trine it was the duty of the United States to do this. There 
was much excitement in both countries for a time, but in 
1896 the matter was settled by negotiation. 

The Chicago Exposition. — In 1893 there was held at 
Chicago a great World's Fair, called the Columbian Expo- 
sition, to celebrate the four hundredth anniversary of the 
discovery of America by Columbus. The buildings were 
dedicated in 1892, which was the four hundredth year, but 
the Fair did not open until the spring of 1893. 

The Panic of 1893 and the Repeal of the Silver Law. — In 
1893 there occurred a financial panic which, like former 
panics, was the result of too much speculation, and of 
another cause. The law of 1890 compelling the government 
to buy a great mass of silver every month, and to issue 
Treasury notes in payment for it, was piling up a useless 
hoard of metal in the Treasyry and steadily increasing the 
paper currency which the government was bound by law to 
redeem in coin, although the metal in a silver dollar was 
worth only fifty cents. So much gold went out of the Treas- 



382 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

ury under these conditions that in April only ninety-seven 
million dollars in gold was left there, while by general agree- 
ment it had been decided that there must never be less than 
one hundred million dollars kept on hand by way of making 
sure that all Treasury notes should be redeemed whenever 
presented. The alarm was great, and President Cleveland 
called a special session of Congress to meet in August and 
deal with the difificulty. By that time the leaders of both 
parties in Congress had come to regard the system of deal- 
ing with silver as a source of great danger, and in response 
to Cleveland's suggestion Congress repealed the law of 
1890. 

The Wilson Tariff Bill.— The McKinley tariff law did not 
satisfy even those who had enacted it. It was their pur- 
pose, had they carried the election of 1892, themselves to 
change it in important particulars. As the Democrats had 
elected their candidate for President, and were in control 
of the House of Representatives, they planned to make a 
radical change and to enact a tariff law upon quite different 
principles. To that end a new tariff bill was framed by Will- 
iam L. Wilson, chairman of the Committee of Ways and 
Means, and introduced into the House. It was not by any 
means such a bill as the leading Democrats in Congress and 
the country desired. It retained far more of the protective 
duties than they wished. But as the Democrats in Congress 
were themselves divided in opinion with regard to such 
matters, the bill as introduced was a compromise. It was 
afterwards still further amended until when it passed it made 
only two important changes in our tax laws. It put raw 
wool on the free list for one thing, and for another it im- 
posed a tax of two cents in the dollar on all incomes of more 
than four thousand dollars. This income-tax provision was 
declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court and never 
went into effect. 

A New State. — One new State, Utah, was admitted during 
this term, on January 4, 1896. This brought the total num- 
ber of States up to forty-five. Utah had long been popu- 



BEGINNING OF McKINLEY'S ADMINISTRATION 383 

lous enough for Statehood, but the Mormons, who consti- 
tuted a majority of the people there, advocated polygamy 
and practised it. It was not until they agreed to abandon 
it and forbid it by their State constitution that the Ameri- 
can people consented to let that Territory become a State. 

Stunmary. — i. During Harrison's administration laws were passed 
which nearly doubled the number of persons entitled to pensions from 
the government. A new tariff bill, framed by William McKinley, of 
Ohio, was enacted. It increased the protective duties and provided 
for reciprocity. A bill was passed also requiring the government to 
buy four and a half million ounces of silver each month and to issue 
Treasury notes in payment for it. 

2. In the election of 1892 the chief question was that of the tariff. 
Harrison was nominated for reelection, but was defeated by Cleveland, 
the Democratic candidate. 

3. A serious panic occurred in 1893, which was due in part to the 
effects of the silver purchase law passed in 1890. A special session of 
Congress was called, which repealed that law. 

4. During Cleveland's administration the Wilson Tariff Bill was 
passed. 

5. The revolution in Hawaii, the controversy between England and 
this country over the Alaskan fisheries, and a dispute with England 
concerning the boundary of Venezuela were the principal foreign mat- 
ters dealt with during Cleveland's second term. 

6. During the summer of 1893 a great World's Fair was held in 
Chicago to celebrate the four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of 
America. 

Collateral Reading. — Andrews's " History of the Last Quarter Cen- 
tury of the United States," II., 158, 159, 215-219, 303-308, 310-318, 
349-369. 

CHAPTER LVIII 

BEGINNING OF McKINLEY's ADMINISTRATION 

Election of 1896. — In the election of 1896 the chief ques- 
tion at issue was what should be done about silver. The 
repeal of the Silver Purchase Act had cut ofif the silver-mine 
owners from a market for four million five hundred thou- 
sand ounces of their product every month. Several efforts 



384 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

had been made in Congress to pass a law providing that the 
government should coin into money all the silver that might 
be offered to it at the ratio of sixteen to one — that is to say, 
that it should put sixteen times as much silver into a silver 
dollar as it put of gold into a gold dollar. 

At the price at which silver then sold the metal in a silver 
dollar would have been worth, as metal, only about half a 
dollar, but the silver men contended that if the government 
should adopt their plan of coining it freely the price would 
rise until the silver dollars would in themselves be worth 
as much as gold dollars. 

The Republican party had formerly been divided on this 
question just as the Democratic party was. But by 1896 
the Republicans had made up their minds to stand out 
against any further coinage of silver, and many Democrats 
held a similar view. The Republican convention nominated 
William McKinley, of Ohio, for President. In its platform 
the party declared itself to be in favor of keeping gold as 
the only standard of money in this country, and " opposed 
to the free coinage of silver except by international agree- 
ment." Most of the delegates from the silver-mining States 
and others at once withdrew from the party. 

The Democratic convention in July nominated William J. 
Bryan, of Nebraska, for President, and declared itself in 
favor of " the free and unlimited coinage of both silver and 
gold at the present legal ratio of sixteen to one without 
waiting for the aid or consent of any other nation." 

A great many Democrats throughout the country, but 
especially in the Eastern States, refused to stand upon this 
platform. Some of them held a convention at Indianapolis, 
nominated John M. Palmer, of Illinois, for President, and 
declared themselves opposed to free coinage, and in favor of 
the gold standard. These called themselves National Demo- 
crats. They were opposed to the Republicans on questions 
of tariff and other policies, but in this election they re- 
garded the silver question as more important than all others. 
A still larger number of Democrats, fearing the election of 



BEGINNIx\G OF McKINLEYS ADMINISTRATION 385 




^^S^^^^^^^^^d^^^^ 



386 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

Bryan and the adoption of a free silver policy, decided to 
vote for the Republican candidate, McKinley. 

The Populists a little later nominated Bryan for Presi- 
dent and Thomas E, Watson for Vice President. The 
Democrats had nominated Arthur E. Sewall, of Maine, for 
the second place. McKinley was elected by a large ma- 
jority of electoral votes. The Republicans at the same 
time secured a majority in the Senate and in the House of 
Representatives. 

The Dingley Tariff Bill. — The necessity of doing some- 
thing to remedy evils in the tariff laws was so great that 
President McKinley called a special session of Congress, and 
in June, 1897, it passed a new tariff law called the Dingley 
Tariff, from the name of the chairman of the committee that 
framed it. It increased the duties on certain imports, and 
levied duties on some things which had been admitted free 
under the Wilson law. It was in a high degree protective. 

Conditions in Cuba. — In the early years of the nineteenth 
century Spain had lost all her American possessions except 
Cuba, Porto Rico, and some smaller islands lying near 
them. Spain governed Cuba very harshly, and for many 
years there had been repeated insurrections and wars in the 
island, one of which had lasted for ten years. These dis- 
turbances greatly injured the trade of the United States, 
and the people of our country were much concerned over 
the oppression of an island which lay so near our coast. Our 
government frequently remonstrated with Spain, but to no 
effect. We several times tried to buy Cuba, but Spain 
would not sell. 

In 1895 another rebellion broke out in the island and a 
native government was set up there. Between this native 
government and the Spanish authorities there was constant 
war, resulting in much bloodshed and the destruction of 
much property. In order to crush this rebellion the Span- 
ish commander, General Weyler, compelled all the farmers 
to leave their homes and come with their families to live 
in the towns, where he provided no food or clothing for 



BEGINNING OF McKINLEYS ADMINISTRATION 



387 



them, and where they died by thousands. Our government 
protested against this, and Weyler was removed, but mat- 
ters grew no better. 

The Destruction of the " Maine." — All these things aroused 
sympathy for the Cubans among the American people. 
Finally, our government 
sent the battleship "Maine" 
on a friendly visit to the 
harbor of Havana. On the 
night of February 15, 1898, 
the " Maine " was blown up 
in that harbor by a mine, 
and two of her officers and 
two hundred and sixty-four 
of her crew were killed. 
Many people suspected that 
this thing had been done with the knowledge or consent of 
Spanish officials, but the crime could not be fastened upon 
any one. The people of the United States were greatly 
excited over the outrage, and,foreseeingthat war with Spain 
was probably drawing near, Congress appropriated fifty 
million dollars with which to put our country into a state 
of defense. 

The Approach of War.^ — On April 1 1 President McKinley 

sent a special mes- 




The "Maine" 



KeyWest*-'"' ^^ 
Havana ■^'^^■^ '^ 



ISLE OF 
PINES 




sage to Congress 
on the subject of 
Cuba. He declared 
that conditions 
there were intoler- 
able to the United 
States, and that the 
only way in which 
they could be bet- 
tered was by compelling a peace in the islands. He said 
that in the name of humanity and civilization the war in 
Cuba must stop, and he asked from Congress authority to 



W^t 



Cuba and Porto Rico 



388 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 




use the military and naval forces of the United States in 

bringing about peace. 

In response to this message Congress passed a resolution 

authorizing the President to stop the war in Cuba, and, if 

necessary, to use the army and navy for that purpose. The 

resolution also demanded that Spain should at once give up 
its authority in Cuba and withdraw 
its land and naval forces from that 
island. The resolution gave Spain 
five days in which to reply. With- 
out waiting for the five days to pass 
Spain instantly dismissed the United 
States minister at Madrid. This was 
practically a declaration of war. 

The President at once proclaimed a 
blockade of the Cuban coast, and sent 
Commodore Sampson with a fleet to 
enforce it. A "flying squadron" under 

Commodore Schley was held at 

Hampton Roads (near Norfolk) 

to guard our coast cities if an at- 
tack should be made upon them. 

President McKinley issued a call 

for one hundred and twenty-five 

thousand volunteers, and they 

quickly responded. 

In the meantime a Spanish 

fleet commanded by Admiral 

Cervera was at the Cape Verde 

Islands, and its destination was 

not known. Scouting boats, 

tugs, and yachts were sent out to watch for its appearance, 

and on April 25 Congress declared that war between Spain 

and the United States had existed since April 21st. 



Wimam T. Sampson 




Winfield S. Schley 



Summary. — i. In the election of 1896 the silver question was the 
main issue. The Republicans declared against the policy of coining 



THE SPANISH WAR 389 

silver, while the Democrats favored it. In the election McKinley, 
the Republican candidate, was chosen. 

2. A new tariff bill was passed early in McKinley's term. It was 
strongly protective. 

3. Spain having failed to suppress a rebellion in Cuba in spite of 
cruel measures, and the American battle ship " Maine " having been 
blown up in the harbor of Havana, the President asked Congress for 
authority to interfere and end the Cuban war. Congress granted him 
the authority asked, and Spain promptly dismissed the American Min- 
ister at Madrid, thus practically declaring war. 

4. Our government at once sent a fleet to blockade Cuba, and sta- 
tioned another on our own coasts to guard them. On April 25 Con- 
gress formally declared war. 

Collateral Reading. — Lodge's " The War with Spain," 27-36. 



CHAPTER LIX 

THE SPANISH WAR 

The Battle of Manila Bay. — Great Britain declared her 

neutrality on the 24th of April. The Asiatic .squadron of 

our navy was lying- at that time at 

the British port of Hong Kong, 

China. Under the laws of nations 

Commodore George Dewey,* who 

commanded it, must leave Hong 

Kong with his ships in tweiity-four 

hours. He had already been ordered 

to go to Manila as soon as war should 

be declared and destroy the Spanish 

fleet stationed there. Adopting the 

methods which he had learned from 

Farragut, under whom he had served q^^^^^ P^^^y 

at Mobile, Dewey disregarded the 

danger of mines and torpedoes, and steamed straight into 

Manila Bay at daybreak on Sunday morning, May i. He 

at once opened fire on the Spanish fleet and destroyed it 

without the loss of a single man on any one of his own ships. 

* For biography, see Appendix. 




390 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 



In recognition of this exploit Dewey was made rear ad- 
miral, and afterwards admiral, of the navy. 

In the West Indies — Pursuing Cervera. — Cervera's fleet, 
from the Cape Verde Islands, appeared off the island of 

Martinique, May ii. Samp- 
son's squadron was ordered to 
the eastern end of Cuba, and 
Schley's to the western end, to 
stop Cervera on his way to Ha- 
vana. Being short of water and 
provisions, Cervera entered the 







^5 \S"M't*T^I'-A 

Mamlit liitp^y \- -^ \ J^ 







■^j, 'SULU 

<ORTH BORNEj).' »3 I'S LA N DS 

^^^„^<i^- CELEBES 




harbor of Santiago de Cuba. 



The Philippines 



The entrance is narrow and 
winding, and vessels lying within 
the harbor can not be seen from 
the outside. Sampson and 
Schley were ordered to Santi- 
ago to blockade the port. They 
could not enter the harbor be- 
cause it was strewn with mines 
and torpedoes, and no attack 
could be made until land forces 
should arrive. Meantime the work of the fleet was to pre- 
vent Cervera from escaping. 

Hobson's Exploit. — To make sure of this. Lieutenant 
Hobson, a young xA.labamian in the navy, undertook the 
dangerous task of sinking the coal ship " Merrimac " across 
the narrow entrance of the harbor. With seven men for 
crew he steamed in before daybreak on June 3, and under 
the fire of the enemy sank his ship at a point where the 
channel was very narrow. But as the ship's steering gear 
was destroyed by a shot, Hobson could not place her in 
exactly the position he intended. It was still possible for 
the Spanish ships to slip by her. Hobson and his men 
floated away on a raft under a terrific fire, and were picked 
up by Admiral Cervera and made prisoners of war. 

Shafter's Campaign. — A little army under General Wil- 



THE SPANISH WAR 



391 




William R. Shafter 



Ham R. Shafter landed near Santiago 
on June 23. Advancing toward San- 
tiago, some of the troops under Gen- 
eral Joseph Wheeler and General 
Young met the Spaniards on the 
24th at Las Guasimas and in a skir- 
mish defeated them. Two battalions 
of the First Volunteer Cavalry, or 
Roosevelt Rough Riders, were en- 
gaged in this affair. 

El Caney. — A Spanish line about 
seven miles long guarded Santiago 
on the east. It extended from Agua- 

doras on the south to El Caney on the north, and the 
strongest point in it was at San Juan Hill. The Americans 
attacked El Caney at six o'clock in the morning of July i, 
expecting to carry it easily, and then unite with the force 
on their left and help in taking San Juan Hill. But the 
Spanish at El Caney resisted so stubbornly that the place 
was not taken until late in the day. 

San Juan Hill. — The troops before San Juan had been 
ordered to begin their attack as soon as they heard the guns 
at El Caney. As they advanced they were exposed to the 
bullets- of sharpshooters firing from be- 
hind trees, as well as to the artillery fire 
of the Spaniards. There was much con- 
fusion, and the rapidly succeeding orders 
were conflicting. But the courage of the 
officers and men saved the day in spite 
of grievous errors in the plan of battle. 
Colonel Roosevelt,* with his Rough Rid- 
ers, and a colored regiment, distinguished 
themselves by a gallant assault. A se- 
ries of sudden charges finally put the 
enemy to flight after six hours of hard 
fighting. On the next day the Spaniards 

A Rough Rider * For biography, see Appendix. 




392 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 




VICINITY OF ._, 

SANTIAGO DE CUBA '■'^A/j. ^ 



tried to recover the hill by a series 
of assaults which lasted from five 
o'clock in the morning until nine 
o'clock at night, but they were 
repulsed. 

The Destruction of Cervera*s 
Fleet. — The fall of Santiago was 
now certain, and Cervera with his ships must leave the har- 
bor at once or share the fate of the city. On the morn- 
ing of July 3 the Spanish fleet crept out of the harbor and 
turned westward in the hope of escaping. The American 
ships closed in and gave chase, firing so rapidly and with 
such precision of aim that the Span- 
iards were in many cases driven from 
their guns. Within four hours the 
Spanish fleet was completely de- 
stroyed. More than five hundred of 
its men were killed and wounded, 
and many more were drowned. Cer- 
vera and nearly eighteen hundred of- 
ficers and men were captured. 

Rear Admiral Sampson, in his flag- 
ship, the " New York," was about 
seven miles away when the battle be- 
gan. He had gone to hold a conference with General Shaf- 
ter, but when he heard the firing he turned swiftly about to 
join the battle. Santiago, with about twenty-two thousand 
Spanish troops, surrendered to Shafter July 17. 

The Campaign in Porto Rico. — General Miles, the general 
in chief of the army, had arrived in Cuba with additional 
troops about a week before the occupation of Santiago. 
When it was seen that his force would not be needed there 
he proceeded with it to seize the island of Porto Rico. The 
people there received him gladly, while the Spanish soldiers 
retreated, making a very slight show of resistance. 

The Treaty of Peace. — After the loss of her two fleets and 
the fall of Santiago, Spain asked for terms of peace. In the 




Nelson A. Miles 



THE SPANISH WAR 393 

protocol of August 12, 1898, she gave up all claim to Cuba, 
ceded to us Porto Rico and the other Spanish islands in the 
West Indies, and agreed to give us also any island we might 
select in the Ladrones, a Pacific Island group. The United 
States was to occupy Manila until a treaty of peace should 
determine the disposition of the Philippines ; but before the 
news of the protocol had reached the Philippines Manila 
was captured through the joint operations of Dewey's ships 
and an army commanded by General Wesley Merritt. 
When the final treaty was made Spain ceded to the United 
States the island of Guam, in the Ladrones, and the whole 
of the Philippine group, for which this country paid her 
twenty million dollars. 

The Annexation of Hawaii. — At the request of the republic 
of Hawaii that group of islands was annexed to the United 
States July 7, 1898. Tw^o years later a Territorial form of 
government was established in the islands. 

Summary. — i. On the ist of May, 1898, Commodore Dewey, with an 
American fleet, destroyed the Spanish squadron in the harbor of Manila. 

2 Another Spanish fleet, under Admiral Cervera, entered the harbor 
of Santiago, Cuba, and was blockaded there by American warships 
under Sampson and Schley. 

3. To perfect the blockade. Lieutenant Hobson, with a crew of seven 
men, at great risk, sank the collier " Merrimac " across the channel of 
the harbor June 3. 

4. On June 23 troops under Shafter landed near Santiago, advanced 
toward that city, and on July i carried El Caney and San Juan Hill. 

5. Cervera's fleet tried to escape from the harbor of Santiago on 
July 3 and was promptly destroyed by the squadron under Sampson 
and Schley. 

6. General Miles, with an army, seized upon Porto Rico, and the 
war was practically over. By the treaty ending it Spain gave up her 
claim to Cuba, and ceded to the United States Porto Rico and her 
other West India islands, the island of Guam in the Pacific, and the 
Philippine Islands. 

7. The Hawaiian Islands were annexed to the United States July 7, 
1898. 

Collateral Reading. — (The battle of Manila Bay to the close of the 
war.) Lodge's "The War with Spain," 47-61, 110-151. 



THE WAR AND ITS RESULTS 395 

CHAPTER LX 

THE WAR AND ITS RESULTS 

The Cost of the War. — Besides the fifty million dollars 
appropriated by Congress as a defense fund, the govern- 
ment issued and sold two hundred million dollars in bonds, 
and raised still further revenues with which to meet the cost 
of the war by new taxes. It taxed beer, tea, and legacies. It 
also required government stamps on bank checks, telegraph 
messages, express companies' receipts, business documents, 
and certain articles of merchandise. These taxes were 
reduced and many of them abolished entirely on July i, 
1901. 

The War a Common Interest. — This war did much to 
increase good feeling between the North and the South. 
For more than a third of a century the two sections, having 
nothing now to quarrel about, had been drawing nearer and 
nearer together in feeling. Their interests were the same, 
and their business and social relations constantly brought 
them into friendly intercourse with each other. When 
Spain declared war upon the country all the people were of 
one mind and one purpose, to defend the flag and the nation. 
Alabama gave to the cause in Lieutenant Hobson a hero of 
whom the whole country is proud. Roosevelt's Rough 
Riders, made up of men from North, East, South, and 
West, excited enthusiasm in all quarters. George Dewey 
and Commodore Sampson proved by their deeds that the 
prowess of the North in past years had known no diminu- 
tion. Commodore Schley, on the other hand, was a South- 
erner, and General Joseph Wheeler, who so greatly dis- 
tinguished himself as a fighter, brought to the country a 
military skill which he had acquired as a general in the Con- 
federate army. 

Porto Rico. — The United States took formal possession of 
Porto Rico October i8, 1898, and the American flag was 



396 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

raised over its capital city, San Juan. A military govern- 
ment was established, and the work of improving the social, 
educational, and industrial condition of the people was 
begun. Civil government was established in the island in 
1900. 

Cuba after the War. — Cuba was finally evacuated by the 
Spaniards in January, 1899. A military government was 
established by the United States for the purpose of restoring 
order and managing the affairs of the island until a govern- 
ment of their own could be established by the people of 
Cuba. While the United States continued to govern the 
island, the policy followed was to put Cubans into positions 
of responsibility wherever it could be done safely. A caucus 
of Cuban leaders was called to lay the foundation for a con- 
stitutional convention. The convention, composed of rep- 
resentative Cubans, met on November 5, 1900, and by Feb- 
ruary 21, 1901, it had completed the work of framing a Con- 
stitution. After some discussion between our government 
and the Cuban convention the Constitution was approved, 




Insurgent Filipinos 



THE WAR AND ITS RESULTS 



39; 




Elwell S. Otis 



an election was held for president, vice 
president, and members of Congress, 
and in 1902 the government of the 
republic of Cuba came into being. 

The Philippines. — The people of the 
Philippine Islands were in revolt 
against Spain at the time when the 
Islands were ceded to the United 
States. Emilio Aguinaldo, the leader 
of the rebels, was at the head of a 
native government. When the islands 
were ceded to this country the Fili- 
pinos insisted that the United States should recognize their 
independence; and this being refused, a rebellion broke out 
and our troops in Manila were attacked by the natives on 
February 4, 1899. The Filipinos were quickly and com- 
pletely routed. General Otis, who was in command, sent 
expeditions against every point where the natives made a 
stand, and many engagements occurred. The Americans 
were everywhere victorious, and the rebellion seemed to be 
broken, but Aguinaldo still insisted upon the recognition 
of his govern- 
ment, and with a 
few followers he 
fled to the moun- 
tains and carried 
on an annoying 
guerrilla warfare 
against the 
Americans. In 
March, 1901 , 
General Funston 
captured Aguin- 



^^! 




Settled area in 1870 ^,"- 

|- .•_.■,:- [Dots indicate regions settled 
1^^^^^ between 1870 and 1900 




Settled area in 1900 



aldo, and in June of that year President McKinley issued 
an order establishing civil government in the islands. 

The Population. — By the census of 1900 the population of 
the main body of the United States was found to be 75,994,- 



398 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

ooo; and with Alaska, the Phihppines, Porto Rico, and 
other outlying possessions the total population was 84,- 
233,000. 

Summary, — i. The war with Spain cost the United States two or 
three hundred million dollars. It secured the freedom of Cuba and 
the annexation to this country of Porto Rico, Guam, and the Philip- 
pines. It also brought out strongly the friendship and fellowship of 
the Northern and Southern people of the United States. 

2. Porto Rico was formally annexed in 1898, and civil government 
was established there in 1900. 

3. The United States maintained a military government in Cuba 
until the people of that island could frame a satisfactory government 
for themselves. This they did, and the Republic of Cuba took its place 
among the nations of the earth in the spring of 1902. 

4. In the Philippines the natives, or a part of them, resisted Amer- 
ican authority, and a guerrilla war was carried on until the Filipino 
leader Aguinaldo was captured in March, 1901. In June of that year 
civil government was established in the islands. 

Collateral Reading.— Lodge's " The War with Spain," 233-236. 



CHAPTER LXI 

INVENTION AND INDUSTRY IN THE LAST HALF OF THE 
NINETEENTH CENTURY 

The End of the Century. — The last ten years of the nine- 
teenth century were the most prosperous decade that the 
country had known, not only in material ways, but in edu- 
cation, in culture, and in all else that fits a people to bear 
their proper part in the work of the world. 

From thirteen States, with a population of less than four 
millions in 1790, the Repubhc had expanded to forty-five 
States, with a population of over seventy-five millions. 

A "Wonderful Half Century. — The last half of the nine- 
teenth century saw greater advances perhaps than any 
other like period in history in the matters of invention and 



INVENTION AND INDUSTRY 



399 



industrial progress. Invention and discovery during that 
time completely revolutionized the industries of the world, 
and this country had the largest share of all in the progress 
thus made. 

Electrical Inventions. — Up to 1850 almost the only gen- 
eral use made of electricity was in the telegraph. From 
the beginning its inventor, Morse, experimented in the hope 
of finding a way to lay telegraph lines across the seas. He 
succeeded only in showing that this might some day be 
possible. During the fifties, Cyrus W. Field.* of New York, 
set himself to work to make ocean telegraphy a fact. After 
several failures, a new cable was laid in 1866, which worked 
perfectly, and the great problem, of uniting the continents 
by telegraph under 
the sea was solved. 

The Telephone. — 
The telephone was in- 
vented by Alexander 
Graham Bell, and was 
first exhibited at the 
Centennial Exhibition 
in 1876. This was the 
greatest of all electri- 
cal inventions since 
the telegraph, and, 
like the telegraph, it 
was the work of an American. The beginning of the twen- 
tieth century saw a still greater marvel in the system by 
which messages can be sent great distances without con- 
necting wires. 

Electric Lights. — Long years of experiment were neces- 
sary before electric lights could be produced cheaply 
enough for general use. Success in these endeavors was 
achieved about 1870, and from that time on electric light- 
ing, both public and private, has become more and more 
general. To Thomas A. Edison * and some other Amer- 

* For biography, see Appendix. 




Wireless-telegraph station 



400 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 



icans must be given the credit of much that was done 
toward making such hght practicable. 

Electric Cars. — The first practical electric cars in the 
world were used in Richmond, Virginia, in 1888. Since 
then electricity has almost entirely displaced the horse as a 
motive power for street cars. 

These are the principal electric inventions of the last 
half century, but in many hundreds of other ways the skill 
of our electricians has made electricity the servant of man, 
and it is the opinion of those most competent to judge that 
in this department of practical science we are only at the 

beginning of development. 

Typewriters^ — Another great 
American invention belonging to 
the last half of the nineteenth 
century was the typewriting ma- 
chine. The first successful ma- 
chine of the kind was invented 
by Sholes and Glidden in 1868. 
The Remington Company un- 
dertook its manufacture in 1874, 
and after that it grew at first 
slowly and afterwards very rap- 
idly into general use. 

Typesetting Machines. — Until 
near the end of the nineteenth 
century all printing matter had 
to be " set up " with movable 
types by hand. After many efforts to invent a machine 
which would successfully set type, the end was achieved 
by combining many devices in the linotype machine. In 
using this machine the printer merely touches buttons on 
a keyboard like that of a typewriter. The speed and cheap- 
ness of this method have made the great daily newspaper of 
our day possible. 

Agricultural Implements. — Mention has already been made 
of the reaper. Other devices for helping the farmer in his 




Typesetting machine 



INVENTION AND INDUSTRY 4OI 

work and enabling one man to do the work of many are 
the thrashing machine, various kinds of rakes, gang plows, 
steam plows, hay presses, cotton compressing machines, 
and the like. These have grown in answer to a need. As 
our manufactures have increased, and as our commercial 
business has been enlarged, more and more people have 
been needed in the cities and manufacturing towns. These 
have been drawn largely from the country, and their places 
on the farm have been taken in a great degree by machines. 

Cotton. — About two-thirds of all the cotton used in the 
world is produced in the United States. 

Until 1889 Great Britain was the leading nation in the 
manufacture of raw cotton into fabrics, but in that year the 
United States passed the older country in the amount of 
cotton manufactured. In this country New England has 
always led in cotton manufacturing, but of recent years the 
South has begun to rival that section in this industry. 

Many important inventions and improvements in ma- 
chinery for manufacturing cotton have been made in this 
country. In order to keep pace with these improvements 
the mill owners have often been forced to discard machinery 
long before it was worn out, and use more improved de- 
vices in its stead. 

By-products of Cotton. — Originally the cotton plant was 
cultivated only for the fiber that surrounds the seeds. Since 
1855 the manufacture of a valuable oil from cotton seed has 
been a successful and rapidly growing industry. The fiber 
of the stalk of the cotton plant is also now turned to account 
in making coarse baggings. Valuable dyes are extracted 
from the root of the plant and from the oil of the seed, while 
an important food for cattle is made of what is left of the 
seeds after extracting the oil. 

Iron.— Ours is to-day the leading country in the production 
of iron and steel, and it consumes a larger amount of both in 
the manufacture of machinery and other things than any 
other country. Steel manufacturing with us had its great 
beginning in 1864, when the Bessemer process was intro- 



402 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

duced. A newer method of making steel, called the Sie- 
mens open-hearth process, is now largely in use. 

The Great Writers of Our Country. — It would require 
many pages to hold even a list of those American authors 
who have achieved distinction. We can mention only the 
few foremost writers in the several departments. 

The most conspicuous writers who appeared during the 
first third of the nineteenth century were Bryant,* Dana, 
Drake, and Halleck in poetry, Washington Irving and 
Cooper in polite hterature and fiction, Noah Webster as a 
lexicographer, and Audubon * as a naturalist. During the 
next twenty years several of the most famous of all Amer- 
ican writers appeared. These included Longfellow,* Whit- 
tier, Holmes, Poe,* and Hawthorne in poetry, fiction, and 
general literature, Bancroft,* Motley, Parkman,* and Pres- 
cott as great original historical writers, and Gray in botany. 
These continued to enrich literature from year to year until 
nearly our own time. A little later came Emerson * and 
Lowell, whose influence upon thought will permanently 
endure. 

The men named were the great leaders. A score of 
others, only a little less prominent, might be mentioned 
without including any living author in the list. 

Collateral Reading. —(Industrial) Andrews's "History of the United 
States," II., 284-291; (Southern Progress since the War) Andrews's 
" History of the Last Quarter Century of the United States," II., 367- 
380; (Progress of the West, and Material Progress Generally) Andrews's 
" History of the United States," II., 66-74, 255-259. 



CHAPTER LXII 

SOME LATER EVENTS 

The Election of 1900. — In the election of 1900 President 
McKinley was renominated by the Republicans, and Theo- 
dore Roosevelt, of New York, was their candidate for Vice 

♦ For biography, see Appendix. 



SOME LATER EVENTS 



403 




President. The platform 
of that party, like that of 
1896, declared for gold as 
the sole standard of money 
and against the free and 
unlimited coinage of silver. 
The Democratic con- 
vention again nominated 
William J. Bryan, of Ne- 
braska, for President, and 
at his demand again de- 
clared itself in favor of the 
free and unlimited coinage 
of silver and gold at the 
ratio of sixteen to one. 
The platform declared 
also that the " paramount 
issue" of the campaign 
that is to say, the party de- 
clared itself opposed to the acquisition of such territory as 
the Philippine Islands, and to the course of our government 
in refusing to recognize the Filipino republic and using 
troops to suppress the insurrection there. But the question 
of silver constituted the real issue of the contest. Those 
Democrats who had before refused to vote for Bryan and 
free silver coinage still 
refused in the main, 
and Mr. McKinley was 
elected by a larger 
electoral majority than 
before. 

The Pan-American 
Exposition. — In 1901 a 
great World's Fair was 
held at Buffalo, New 
York, called the Pan- 
American Exposition. Triumphal Bridge, Pan-American Exposition 



Copyright, 1898, by Knckwood, N. Y. 

Theodore Roosevelt 
was that of " imperialism 




404 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

It was intended to exhibit the achievements of the western 
hemisphere during the nineteenth century. President Mc- 
Kinley visited this exposition in September, and on the 6th 
of that month a reception was held in his honor in the Tem- 
ple of Music. As he stood shaking hands with the people 
as they passed, a young man with his right hand wrapped 
in a handkerchief came up, and the President reached out 
to greet him. Suddenly there came two shots from a pistol 
concealed under the handkerchief, and McKinley fell, mor- 
tally wounded. After lingering for eight days the Presi- 
dent died on September 14. On September 14, the day of 
President McKinley's death, Vice President Theodore 
Roosevelt took the oath of office and became President. 

The Isthmian Canal. — The United States having decided 
to cut a canal across the isthmus which joins North and 
South America, it was found that the terms of an old treaty 
between this countryand Great Britain stood in the way of 
the United States assuming control of such a canal. Secre- 
tary of State John Hay took up the matter and secured a 
treaty which removed this difficulty. The treaty was nego- 
tiated by Mr. Hay with the British Ambassador, Lord 
Pauncefote, and was signed on February 6, 1900. The 
Senate refused to ratify it without certain amendments, 
which England declined to accept. Mr. Hay persisted in 
his negotiations, and in December, 1901, a new treaty, 
satisfactory to both countries, was laid before the Senate, 
and soon afterwards ratified. 

For a long time it was a question whether the canal 
should be cut across the Isthmus of Panama or farther 
north through Nicaragua. Toward the end of its session, 
in the summer of 1902, Congress authorized the President 
to purchase and complete the Panama canal, which a 
French company had begun, in case satisfactory title and 
control could be obtained, Colombia refused to ratify a 
treaty giving us control of the canal route. Thereupon 
the province of Panama seceded, and granted the canal 
strip to the United States on terms similar to those rejected 



SOME LATER EVENTS 405 

by Colombia; and in return the United States guaranteed 
the independence of Panama. The rights of the French 
company were bought for $40,000,000, and the work of 
completing the canal was begun in 1904. 

Disturbances in China. — In 1900, in northern China, there 
was a widespread uprising against foreigners, led by mem- 
bers of the League of United Patriots, a secret society. 
The last word of the Chinese name of the society resembles 
a word meaning " fist." As the members held athletic con- 
tests, foreigners called them " Boxers." Christian mission- 
aries and their native converts were murdered, and foreign- 
ers, including even ambassadors, were besieged in their re- 
servation in Peking. The European powers, Japan, and 
the United States were obliged to send troops to Peking to 
protect their ambassadors and other foreigners, and to re- 
store order. In the negotiations that followed, between the 
Chinese government and the foreign powers, Mr. Hay, 
representing the United States, exerted a powerful influence 
against the threatened partition of China, and in favor of 
equal trade privileges in China for all nations. 

Coal Strikes. — The United Mine Workers of America or- 
ganized branches among the anthracite miners of Pennsyl- 
vania in 1899, and thus became one of the most powerful 
labor unions in the country. The next year the anthracite 
miners struck for higher wages. The mine operators made 
some concessions and work was resumed. It was soon evi- 
dent, however, that both parties were dissatisfied, the under- 
lying cause being the desire for the recognition by the 
operators of the miners' union. Early in 1902 the anthra- 
cite miners struck again, demanding of the operators recog- 
nition of the union, higher wages, shorter hours, and other 
modifications of existing customs. Months passed, but 
neither party yielded. There was much rioting, accom- 
panied by bloodshed and destruction of property. After 
long delay, the governor of Pennsylvania called out the 
militia to preserve order. Anthracite coal is used chiefly in 
the Eastern States, and as the winter approached, the local 



406 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

supplies became exhausted, and there was an alarming pros- 
pect of a coal famine. To avert, if possible, this calamity. 
President Roosevelt offered his friendly services to bring 
about a settlement of the questions at issue. Both parties 
finally consented to abide by the decision of a commission 
to be appointed by the President. Pending this decision, 
work in the mines was resumed late in October. The award 
of the Commission, made the following March, was some- 
what favorable to the miners, but did not grant all their 
demands. 

The Election of 1904. — The Republicans in 1904 nominated 
Theodore Roosevelt for President, on a platform upholding 
the administration. The Democrats condemned the adminis- 
tration and nominated Judge Alton B. Parker, of New York; 
their platform was silent on the money question, but Parker 
upheld the gold standard. Roosevelt was elected by a very 
large majority. 

Interstate Commerce.— In 1906 Congress passed several 
laws for regulating interstate commerce, and for maintain- 
ing the quality of goods manufactured anywhere for sale in 
other States. The Interstate Commerce Commission (p. 
376) was given greater power to prevent discrimination in 
the service and charges of railroads, express companies, etc., 
and was even authorized to fix new freight and passenger' 
rates in cases where the previous rates were found to be un- 
just or unreasonable. Three million dollars a year was ap- 
propriated to provide thorough inspection of slaughtering 
and meat-packing establishments. Severe penalties were im- 
posed for carrying on interstate commerce in falsely stamped 
gold and silver ware, or in any adulterated or misbranded 
foods, drugs, medicines, or liquors. 

Oklahoma. — In the same year an act was passed provid- 
ing for the admission of the new State of Oklahoma. The 
western part of the old Indian Territory (p. 308) had been 
settled by white men (1889 and later), and organized as the 
Territory of Oklahoma (1890); the eastern part was still 
occupied chiefly by Indians. The act of 1906 provided that 



SOME LATER EVENTS 



407 



the new State should inchicle both regions. A constitution 
having been framed and adopted by the people of the new 
State, Oklahoma was admitted to the Union November 16, 
1907. 

The Election of 1908. — Both parties in 1908 declared for a 
revision of the tariff, and for other reforms. The Democrats 
for the third time nominated William J. Bryan for President. 
The Republicans nominated and elected William H. Taft, of 
Ohio.* 

Special Session of Con- 
gress. — P resident Taft 
called a special session of 
Congress to revise the tariff". 
After nearly five months' 
deliberation, a new tariff act 
was passed, which reduced 
the duties on some articles 
and increased them on some 
other articles. An excise 
tax of I per cent, was laid 
on the net earnings of cor- 
porations in excess of 
$5,000 per year. Congress 
also proposed an amend- 
ment to the constitution 
giving Congress power to 
lay a tax on incomes. This 
amendment was ratified by the necessary number of States 
early in the year 1913. 

Acts of 1910. — ^In the regular session of Congress, 1909- 
1910, several important acts were passed. The powers of 
the Interstate Commerce Commission were enlarged. An 
act was passed providing for the later admission of Arizona 
and New Mexico as States. 

Population. — The census of 1910 showed 92,000,000 peo- 
ple in the main body of the United States. 
* For biography, see Appendix. 




Si/ P.vh Br„x. 

William H. Taft 



4o8 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 



Events of 191 2. — The admission of New Mexico and Ari- 
zona early in 191 2 made the number of States in the Union 
forty-eight. Congress proposed another amendment to the 
Constitution, providing for the election of Senators by the 
people instead of by the legislature in each State ; this 
amendment was ratified by the necessary number of States 
in 1 91 3. Differences arose between Congress and the Presi- 
dent as to the tariff and 
other subjects of legisla- 
tion, and President Taft 
vetoed several bills. 

Differences arose in the 
Republican party between 
men of progressive and of 
conservative policies, and 
in the Republican conven- 
tion of 191 2 there was a 
close contest between them. 
When the conservatives se- 
cured control and renomi- 
nated President Taft, the 
party was split. The Pro- 
gressives organized a new 
party, declared for many 
reforms, and nominated 
Theodore Roosevelt, who 
had failed to secure the Re- 
publican nomination. Meanwhile the Democrats had nomi- 
nated Woodrow Wilson,* on a platform calling for a re- 
duction of the tariff and for various reforms. Wilson was 
elected by a very large majority of the electoral votes. 
Roosevelt received more votes than Taft. 

Acts of Congress (1913-1914). — President Wilson 
called a special session of Congress to consider; the tariff 
question. After long debates, a new tariff act was passed, 
in accordance with the President's recommendations. 




Woodrow Wilson 



For biography, see Appendix. 



SOME LATER EVENTS 409 

It lowered the duties on many articles. To make up 
for the loss in revenue, a tax was levied on personal in- 
comes in excess of $3,000 or $4,000 a year, and on the in- 
come of corporations, no matter how small. A new 
banking act created twelve federal reserve banks, with 
large powers to issue bank notes and to act as central 
banks for the ordinary banking institutions of the coun- 
try. A Trade Commission was established to supervise 
corporations engaged in interstate commerce, with the 
exception of railroad companies, telegraph companies, 
and other common carriers which were already under the 
supervision of the Interstate Commerce Commission, 

Panama Canal. — The year 1914" was marked by the 
completion of the Panama Canal, under the able manage- 
ment of Colonel George W. Goethals, the chief engineer 
in charge of the work. 

Woman Suffrage. — The question of giving women the 
right to vote on equal terms with men was brought to an 
issue in many States. The first State or territory to 
grant equal suffrage was Wyoming (1869). About 
twenty-five years later, three neighboring States (Colo- 
rado, Idaho, Utah) followed her example. During 
1910-1918 the same action was taken by the States of 
Washington, California, Arizona, Oregon, Kansas, Mon- 
tana, Nevada, New York, Michigan, South Dakota, and 
Oklahoma, and by the territory of Alaska. In many 
other States women have long been permitted to vote 
in school elections, and in several they were given the 
right to vote also for presidential electors and for some of 
the local officers. 

War in Mexico and Europe. — After many years of peace, 
under the strong rule of President Diaz, Mexico became 
the scene of revolution and civil war. The successor of 
Diaz was overthrown and murdered, and General Huerta 
made himself dictator. President Wilson would not 
recognize him as the lawful president of Mexico ; and 
Huerta's opponents in Mexico, the "Constitutionalists," 



4IO RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

finally succeeded in driving him from the country, in 
July, 1914. Meanwhile, in April, United States troops 
were sent to Mexico during a dispute with Huerta over 
the respect due our flag. They took Vera Cruz, but 
after Huerta's downfall they were withdrawn, in No- 
vember. 

The two leading Constitutionalist generals, Carranza 
and Villa, were then carrying on a new civil war, in which 
Carranza was victorious. When his government of 
Mexico was recognized by the United States (191 6), 
Villa raided Columbus, New Mexico, and killed nine- 
teen Americans. American troops were sent in pursuit, 
but failed to capture Villa. Carranza demanded that 
the troops be withdrawn from Mexico, and during nego- 
tiations over this and other questions there was a clash 
between Mexican and American forces at Carrizal. Pres- 
ident Wilson ordered many regiments of state militia 
to the border, and there was grave danger of war ; but 
at length the dispute was ended peacefully. Our troops 
were withdrawn from Mexico. Carranza's troops kept 
Villa in check. Mexico adopted a new constitution 
(191 7) and elected Carranza president. 

The United States was also seriously affected by the 
great war that broke out among European powers in 
1914. President Wilson enforced strict neutrality ; but 
the enormous loss of life and property in Europe, and the 
interference with our trade, caused a great derangement 
of industries in our country. A later effect of the war 
was to increase tremendously our foreign trade. 

Election of 1916. — For President in 1916, the Repub- 
licans nominated Charles Evans Hughes, a justice of 
the Supreme Court. The Progressives named Theodore 
Roosevelt, but he declined the nomination and supported 
Hughes. The Democrats renominated President Wilson. 
The election was so close that the result was in doubt for 
several days. The completed returns showed that Wilson 
was elected. 



SOME LATER EVENTS 411 

Virgin Islands. — In 1916 the United States bought from 
Denmark for $25,000,000 three of the Virgin Islands 
in the West Indies, named St. Thomas, St. John, and 
St. Croix. These islands are important because of the 
excellent harbor of St. Thomas. 

Summary. — I. The election of 1900 turned chiefly on the silver 
question, and Mr. McKinley, the Republican candidate, was elected. 

2. The Pan-American Exposition was held at Buffalo, New York, 
in the summer and fall of 1901. During a visit to this exposition on the 
6th of September President McKinley was shot and mortally wounded 
by an anarchist. He died eight days later, and Vice-President Roose- 
velt succeeded him as President. 

3. After long negotiations a treaty was made in 1901 between Great 
Britain and the United States which enabled this country to carry out 
its plan of constructing and controlling an isthmian canal. In 1902 
Congress authorized the President to purchase and complete the 
Panama Canal, and this work was begun in 1904. 

4. In 1900, in northern China, an uprising against foreigners 
reached such proportions that the European powers, Japan, and the 
United States were obliged to send troops to Peking to protect their 
ambassadors and other foreigners. 

5. A long-continued strike of the anthracite coal miners in 1902 
caused alarm and distress in the Eastern States, where anthracite is 
chiefly used. The questions at issue were finally submitted to a com- 
mission appointed by President Roosevelt. 

6. The election of 1904 turned chiefly on Mr. Roosevelt's record as 
President, and resulted in his favor. 

7. In 1906 Congress passed a number of important laws regulating 
interstate commerce, and provided for the admission of Oklahoma. 

8. In 1908 William H. Taftwas elected President by the Repub- 
licans. He promptly called a session of Congress, at which a new 
tariff law was passed. 

9 In 1 9 10 Congress" provided for the admission of Arizona and 
New Mexico, which became States early in 191 2. 

10. In 1912 Woodrow Wilson was elected President by the Demo- 
crats, and in 1916 he was reelected. 

11. In 1913 two amendments to the Constitution were ratified by 
the States. Congress adopted a new tariff act and levied a tax on 
incomes. It also created a system of federal reserve banks, and es- 
tablished a Trade Commission. 

12. The Panama Canal was completed in 1914. 

13. By 191 8, women had the right to vote on equal terms with men 
in fifteen States. 



CHAPTER LXIII 

THE GREAT WAR 

The war which began in Europe in the summer of 
1914 was the most momentous in history. The future of 
the whole world was at stake. To understand it, we 
must begin with events that happened long before 191 4. 

Europe before the War. — When the United States se- 
cured its independence in 1783, nearly all the countries of 
Europe were monarchies in fact as well as in name. They 
were actually under the rule of kings and nobles. Most 
of the common people had no political rights, and in 
some countries they were still serfs as in the Middle 
Ages, each bound to labor part of the time for the lord 
of the land on which he lived. But during the next 
hundred and thirty years, especially after the French 
Revolutions of 1789, 1830; and 1848, great changes took 
place. In country after country serfdom was abolished, 
monarchs were overthrown or were forced to grant con- 
stitutions, and the people gained a large share in the 
government, usually by electing one house of the law- 
making body. 

Russia and Germany, however, lagged far behind the 
rest of Europe in political progress. In 1914 they were 
still autocracies, or nearly absolute monarchies, under 
emperors and nobles who governed as they pleased. 
In each of these countries the emperor controlled the 
chief officers of the government, and the lawmakers 
chosen by the people had very little power or influence. 
In Austria-Hungary also the emperor and nobles were 
able to rule as they pleased, in spite of apparently liberal 
constitutions, because the people were divided among 
many discordant races. One cause of the Great War 
was the age-long struggle between autocracy and de- 
mocracy. Growing numbers of people in Germany and 

412 



THE GREAT WAR 



413 



Austria-Hungary were demanding freedom or a larger 
share in the government ; and the ruling class believed 
that their control would be made more secure by a suc- 
cessful war. 

German Ambitions. — The German Empire was set up in 
1 87 1, by the monarchs of the various German states, 
of which Prussia was larger than all the 
rest together. The king of Prussia, who 
had recently increased his territory by 
successful wars, was made ex officio the 
German Emperor. 

William II, who became king of Prussia 
and German Emperor in 1888, was strongly 
opposed to democracy. Like the kings of 
the Aiiddle Ages, he believed that he held 
his power by "divine right," and thus was 
entitled to rule without the consent of 
the governed. Moreover, he and the 
Prussian nobles were ambitious to extend 
their empire. The German people were 
taught that they owed strict obedience 
to their rulers ; that they were a chosen 
people, with institutions superior to those 
of other nations ; and that they had a great mission 
to extend their influence over the world. Nearly all 
the able-bodied Germans were trained as soldiers, and 
their standing army was the strongest the world had 
ever seen. Under William II, a powerful navy was 
built. Said he in a public speech, "Our future lies on 
the water." German industries and foreign commerce 
were pushed by government aid. German colonies were 
acquired in Africa, the islands of the southern Pacific, 
and the coast of China. German financiers secured 
concessions for building railroads in Turkey. German 
influence was also dominant in Austria-Hungary and 
Bulgaria. German leaders looked forward to the dom- 
ination of the world, and drank toasts to "The Day" 




German soldier 
about 1910 



414 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

{Der Tag) when war for this purpose should begin. As 
a first step in world power, they planned to control a great 
empire of "Mid- Europe," including Germany, Austria- 
Hungary, the Balkan states, and adjacent provinces. 

Germany against America, 1889-1903. — -Germany's hunger 
for colonies several times led to threats of war with the 
United States, as well as with other nations. In the 
Samoan Islands the high-handed acts of German officers 
led to a show of force in 1889. American and German 
warships were ready for battle there when a hurricane 
destroyed them ; — and an agreement was then made to 
end the dispute. During our war with Spain in 1898, 
when Admiral Dewey was blockading Manila, a German 
fleet showed a disposition to interfere with his operations. 
Dewey protested, and finally sent word to the German 
admiral that he could have a fight if he wanted it ; 
whereupon the Germans desisted. In 1903, in a financial 
dispute with Venezuela, a German force threatened to 
occupy Venezuelan territory in defiance of the Monroe 
doctrine. But this danger was averted by the firmness of 
President Roosevelt, who insisted that the dispute should 
be left to arbitration, and backed up his insistence by 
making ready to send an American fleet to Venezuela. 

Outbreak of the Great War. -7- The immediate cause of 
the Great War was the determination of Austria and 
Germany to gain control over Serbia, one of the Balkan 
states. On the pretext that Serbia was responsible for 
the murder of the heir to the Austrian throne, Austria 
declared war on Serbia late in July, 1914. The Serbs 
are a Slavic people, akin to the Russians. Russia made 
ready to intervene in support of Serbian independence. 
Thereupon Germany declared war on Russia, August i, 
and also on France, which was allied with Russia for de- 
fensive purposes. To invade France across an unfortified 
frontier, German armies forced their way through neutral 
Belgium. This brought Great Britain at once into the 
war in defense of Belgium and of her own interests. 



THE GREAT WAR 415 

The War in 1914-1916. — Germany was better prepared 
for war than her enemies, and had counted on an easy 
victory. But the German invasion of France was turned 
back at the battle of the Marne, a great victory of the 
French (with a few British) under General Joffre (zhofr). 
Both sides intrenched, and for several years the struggle 
dragged on without a decision. Germany and Austria — 
the Central Powers — were joined by Turkey and Bul- 
garia. With the opposing Allies were enlisted Italy and 
several smaller nations ; Japan also fought the Germans 
in the north Pacific. In Europe battle after battle was 
fought ; in opposing trench systems hundreds of miles 
long there was incessant fighting ; millions of men were 
killed, wounded, or made prisoners of war. 

In the battle of Verdun, in 191 6, the German crown 
prince lost 600,000 men in a stubborn but futile attempt 
to crush the French. Then in the equally bloody battle 
of the Somme, the British and French for many weeks 
slowly pushed the Germans back. On the eastern front 
the Germans were more successful. At the end of 191 6 
the Central Powers held most of Belgium, a strip of 
northern France, the greater part of the Balkan states, 
Poland, and a part of western Russia. The Allies had 
taken the German colonies and small parts of Turkey 
and Austria. The British fleet had driven German 
ships to cover and had cut off most of Germany's oversea 
trade. 

New Methods of Warfare. — The Great \\' ar was more 
destructive to life and to property than any previous war. 
This was due not only to the greater number of soldiers 
in action, but also to new means of slaughter. Improved 
cannon and machine guns were used in prodigious 
numbers. Armored automobiles were introduced, and 
for moving over rough ground the British developed the 
"tank," heavily armored, propelled and steered by belt- 
like caterpillar treads, and armed with machine guns and 
small cannon. The tanks could defy machine guns, 



4l6 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 




British tanks 

smash barbed wire entanglements, and cross trenches. 
Still more striking were the airships, of various kinds and 
used for various purposes — fighting, bombing, scouting, 
directing artillery fire. Germany built many huge 
dirigible balloons called Zeppelins, but they were easily 
defeated in battle by the speedy aeroplanes. 

These weapons were terrible enough when used in 
conformity with international law. But the German 
government did not confine itself to lawful warfare. 
German Zeppelins and aeroplanes bombarded unfortified 
cities and villages far away from the zone of military 
operations, killing and maiming hundreds of women and 
children, but few men of military age. This was in flat 
violation of the Hague conventions, a code of inter- 
national law which all the warring nations had recently 
pledged themselves to observe. German scientists also" 
added enormously to the horrors of warfare by introduc- 
ing the unlawful use of torturing poison gas and flame 
projectors. Poison gas proved so effective a weapon 



THE GREAT WAR 417 

that the AlHes were compelled to adopt it in self-defense. 
Soldiers had to protect themselves from the deadly fumes 
by means of gas masks and respirators, which were added 
to their regular equipment. 

In other ways also the German government flouted the 
Hague conventions and other rules of international law, 
as well as the usages of civilization and humanity, on 
the plea of "military necessity," in other words, on the 
theory that the end justifies the means, that might makes 
right. At the outset Germany violated a treaty guaran- 
teeing the neutrality of Belgium, — a treaty which the 
German Chancellor once called a "scrap of paper." 
She terrorized and exploited the people of occupied terri- 
tories by frightfully severe measures of repression, robbery, 
and forced labor ; in plundered Poland a large part of 
the people were wiped out by famine. Likewise in 
Armenia and Syria a million Christians were done to 
death by the Turkish vassals of Germany. Unable to 
attempt a blockade by lawful means, German subma- 
rines tried to cut off the trade of the Allies by sinking 
merchant ships — in many cases without giving passengers 
and crew a chance to save their lives. Many hundreds of 
ships were sunk, but the Allies managed to hold the sub- 
marines in check by means of nets, aeroplanes, and swift 
patrol boats armed with cjuick-firing cannon and later 
with bombs that exploded on sinking to the proper 
depth. 

American Sympathies. — At the beginning of the war, 
most of the people of the Ihiited States believed that our 
country should be neutral. They believed that we ought 
not to interfere in the quarrels of European nations. 
Nevertheless, most of them soon came to hope for the 
success of the Allies, for many reasons. 

Although both sides claimed to be fighting a defensive 
war, the evidence was soon overwhelming that the Central 
Powers were the aggressors. For many years Germany 
had been preparing for war, and at the Hague Peace Con- 



4l8 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

ferences and elsewhere her influence had been thrown 
against projects for reducing armaments and for promot- 
ing arbitration as the means of settling international dis- 
putes. Our own country had recently concluded special 
arbitration treaties with Great Britain, France, and many 
other nations, but Germany had declined to make such 
a treaty with us. 

German plans of expansion included the control of 
large parts of South America, and German writers and 
statesmen openly denounced the Monroe doctrine. To 
citizens of the United States, as well as of other countries, 
who were of German descent, Germany offered the 
right of German citizenship. As such persons were per- 
mitted to remain at the same time citizens of their adopted 
country, this offer was really the assertion of a superior 
claim to their allegiance. 

Germany's disregard of treaties and international law, 
together with her barbarous methods of warfare, meant a 
disastrous set-back to civilization if she should be vic- 
torious. A victory of Germany's military ideals and her 
autocratic rule would mean far more than the govern- 
ment of a few additional provinces without the consent 
of the governed. It would be a deadly menace to our 
own future peace and welfare ; for in the future it would 
be necessary either to submit to German domination, 
or else to keep up a burdensome armament for the defense 
of our rights. Said the German Emperor in 191 5, as 
reported by the American ambassador James W. Gerard, 
"America had better look out after this war," and "I 
shall stand no nonsense from America after the war." 

American Neutrality. — ■ In spite of many reasons for war, 
America's love of peace was so great that we clung as 
long as possible to the position of strict neutrality. For 
a time we hoped to be able to play the part of mediator 
in helping to end the struggle on fair terms. In Decem- 
ber, 1916, President Wilson asked all the warring nations 
to state the aims for which they were fighting, with a 



THE GREAT WAR 419 

view to finding terms on which the fearful contest might 
be ended. He also urged the formation of. a league of 
nations to prevent future wars. The Allies stated their 
aims and approved of the proposed league. Germany 
declined to do so, but proposed instead a conference 
at which terms of peace could be discussed in secret. 
Her proposition was declined by the Allies, on the ground 
that it was designed merely to embarrass them without 
giving any promise or hope of fair terms. 

As a neutral country, the United States insisted on 
the right of its citizens to trade freely with all countries, 
subject to the rules of international law in regard to con- 
traband and blockades. In cutting off trade with Ger- 
many the British searched neutral ships and controlled 
their movements in ways to which we objected as ar- 
bitrary and unlawful. Our protests had little effect, 
but as the dispute concerned only the property, and not 
the lives, of our citizens, it could await arbitration and 
full satisfaction in calmer times. 

On thcDther hand, German interference with our rights 
was more serious because it cost the lives of many Ameri- 
cans. When a German submarine unlawfully sank the 
British liner Lusitania without warning in May, 191 5, 
more than a hundred American passengers, men, women, 
and children, were drowned. President Wilson made 
repeated protests, but other passenger ships were sunk 
without warning, and our government at last threatened 
to break off diplomatic relations if Germany did not 
abandon her unlawful methods of submarine warfare. 
To prevent the break, Germany then made a conditional 
promise not to sink such ships — unless they should 
resist capture — without giving passengers and crew a 
chance to escape in their lifeboats. 

Germany's War on the United States. — Early in 1917, Ger- 
many withdrew her promise and announced that she would 
begin at once an unrestricted submarine warfare against 
all ships, either belligerent or neutral, within a certain 



420 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 



zone around the coasts of Great Britain and France, 
President Wilson thereupon broke off diplomatic rela- 
tions with Germany, but expressed the hope that she 
would not actually carry out her threat. 

By April, however, Germany had sunk several of our 
ships, and had added to the toll of American lives lost 
in other unlawful sinkings. It was plain that the war- 
fare thus made upon us by Germany could be avoided in 




The submarines sank many unarmed ships 

only one way — by abandoning our rights on the ocean. 
There were also several other causes of war. For many 
months German spies in this country, under the direc- 
tion of the German embassy, had been stirring up strikes, 
dynamiting munition factories, and plotting to blow up 
ships leaving our ports. Other German agents were 
agitating against us in several Spanish American countries, 
and in January, 191 7, the German foreign minister. Dr. 
Zimmermann, offered an alliance and financial support 
to Mexico for a war in which the Mexicans should re- 
conquer New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona. He also sug- 
gested that Mexico should invite Japan to join in the 
proposed plan. 



THE GREAT WAR 421 

The Russian Revolution. — American opinion ' was in- 
fluenced also by a revolution in Russia. The Russian 
government had been even more autocratic and oppres- 
sive than the German, and many Americans were afraid 
that Russian autocracy would be strengthened by any 
success of the Allies. But in March, 1917, the Russian 
Czar was deposed, and Russia took the first steps 
toward establishing a government by the people. Thus 
the Great War was rapidly coming to be a clear-cut 
struggle between autocracy and democracy, between 
tyranny and freedom. 

America in the War. — On April 2, 191 7, President Wil- 
son called Congress in special session and laid the case 
before it. He said: "The present German submarine 
warfare against commerce is a warfare against man- 
kind. . . . Each nation must decide for itself how it 
will meet it. . . . There is one choice we cannot 
make, we are incapable of making : we will not choose 
the path of submission and suffer the most sacred rights 
of our nation and our people to be ignored or violated. 
The wrongs against which we now^ array ourselves are 
no common wrongs ; they cut to the very roots of human 
life." The President asked Congress to declare the ex- 
istence of a state of war with Germany, and Congress 
passed the required resolution by a very large majority 
April 6. 

Our country went into the war to secure a just and 
stable peace, and not to gain any special advantage for 
itself. We made no treaty of alliance with the Allies, 
but we worked in close harmony and cooperation with 
them. We lent money and sent supplies and men w^here 
they were most needed to win the victory. War with 
Austria-Hungary was declared in December, 1917. Brazil, 
Cuba, and several other countries followed the lead of 
the United States in declaring war on Germany. The 
plans of the Allies were greatly influenced by our counsel, 
and especially by the American principle of govern- 



422 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RTXENT EVENTS 



ment by the consent of the governed, as a means of 
avoiding future wars. 

Preparations for War. — Congress was suddenly called on 
to pass many laws for putting the country on a war basis. 
Under existing laws several hundred thousand new men 
enlisted in the national guard and in the regular army. 
But for the creation of an army numbering millions, Con- 
gress passed several draft acts or conscription laws. 
On June 5, 191 7, all men between 21 and 31 years of age 
were required to register. Nearly 10,000,000 did so. 
Local draft boards examined these men, and from time to 
time those fit for service, selected partly by classes and 
partly by lot, were called to the colors and sent to camps 
to be trained. In 191 8, Congress provided for the regis- 
tration of all men between 18 and 46 years old. 

Immense appropriations were made for carrying on 
the war, not only for pay and support of soldiers, but 




American gun of i6 inch caliber, painted in camouflage to make it less 
visible to the enemy 



THE GREAT WAR 423 

also for building camps and arsenals, making munitions, 
guns, "tanks," and aeroplanes, and building shipyards 
and ships. Over a billion dollars were devoted to the 
making of aeroplanes alone. 

The cost had to be met by taxes and loans. Within a 
period of less than eighteen months, the people loaned the 
government about $17,000,000,000 by the purchase of 
Liberty bonds. A large sum was raised by the sale 
of War Savings Stamps, and immense sums were collected 
in taxes on incomes, on excess war profits, and on in- 
heritances, besides many other taxes. 

Shipbuilding. — The steady destruction of many mer- 
chant ships by German submarines had reduced consider- 
ably the shipping under the British, French, Norwegian, 
Dutch, and other flags, both Allied and neutral. The 
shortage of ships made it necessary for our government 
to go into the business of shipbuilding on a great scale, 
so that troops and supplies could be rushed to the Allies. 
An Emergency Fleet Corporation, organized and financed 
by the government, contracted for the building of hun- 
dreds of new vessels. At Philadelphia the Hog Island 
shipyard was constructed, larger than any other In exist- 
ence. At many other places also new shipyards were 
built and existing shipyards were taken over by the 
government so that this country was soon the greatest 
shipbuilding nation of the world. Many of the new 
vessels were made of wood, a few of concrete, but the 
largest were of steel. By making many ships exactly 
alike, it was possible to build them faster than ever before ; 
for parts could be made In large quantities at inland fac- 
tories and shipped to the yards as needed. The govern- 
ment also repaired and put into commission a large fleet of 
German ships which had been sheltered in our ports but 
were extensively damaged by their crews under orders from 
Germany in January, 1917. By the middle of 1918 we 
were building ships faster than Germany was sinking them, 
so that the world's shipping had begun to grow larger again. 



424 RECONSTRUCTIOxN AND RECENT EVENTS* 

Food and Fuel Regulation. — As so many men were 
engaged in war, the world's production of food and other 
things was decreasing. In order that the Allies might 
have more food and that our troops might have plenty, 
steps were taken to increase the American supply and 
to cut down home consumption. Farmers were asked 
to plant more grain, and women to can more fruit and 
vegetables. Home gardens were planted everywhere. 
City men and women volunteered to work on farms. 
Congress gave the President power to control the prices 
of wheat, coal, metals, and many other things. Herbert 
Hoover, as Food Administrator, made many rules limit- 
ing the use of meat, flour, sugar, and other foods. 

A similar rationing system was put in force by a Fuel 
Administrator so that there might be plenty of coa4 for 
ships and for factories engaged in war work. The 
" Daylight Saving" law was passed early in 191 8 in order 
to save coal and gas by bringing more of our activities 
into the daylight hours and thus reducing the need of 
artificial light. Under this law our clocks and watches 
are set one hour in advance from the last Sunday in March 
till the last Sunday in October. 

As war measures, also. Congress authorized the Presi- 
dent to forbid the use of foodstuffs in making liquor, 
and prohibited the liquor traffic entirely from July i, 
1919, till after the demobilization of the American troops. 
It also proposed a prohibition amendment to the Constitu- 
tion. This eighteenth amendment was duly ratified by 
the necessary number of states in January, 1919, to go 
into effect one year later. 

Trade Regulation. — lender authority given by Congress 
the President controlled the Imports and exports of the 
country. In 191 8 he took over the control and opera- 
tion of railroads, telegraphs, and telephones for the period 
of the war, thus making it possible to effect economies in 
their management and to prevent interruptions of war 
work. 



THE GRl'.AT WAR 



425 



Popular Support of the War. — These laws and regula- 
tions brought loss and trouble to many people. Because 
of the government's large demand for things, the prices 
of food, clothing, and other articles rose very high, and 
would have risen still higher but" for government con- 
trol. The demand for labor was so great that wages also 
rose ; but multitudes 
of men and women 
workers had to leave 
their homes and move 
to uncomfortable quar- 
ters near their work. 
Taxes were burden- 
some. In carrying on 
the vast business of 
war making, there 
were various mistakes 
and delays, causing 
hardships to many 
persons. Above all, 
several million men 
were drafted for serv- 
ice as soldiers. 

Here were abundant 
causes for discontent, 
for partisan and fac- 
tional strife, for pop- 
ular opposition to the ^ ^^^^''ty ^°^ P^^*^' 
war ; but no. Only a few persons of German descent, 
a few haters of England, part of the Socialist party, 
and a few pacifists and extreme radicals were in open 
opposition. With mar\'elous accord nearly all Americans, 
native and naturalized, rich and poor, men, women, and 
children, joined in hearty support of America's cause. 
They were far more nearly unanimous in support of this 
war than of any other war in our history. 

Besides paying heavy taxes and lending money to the 




426 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

government, the people gave many millions of dollars 
to the Red Cross, the Young Men's Christian Associa- 
tion, the Knights of Columbus, the Young Men's Hebrew 
Association, the Salvation Army, and other organiza- 
tions for helping the men in service. Near the end of 
191 8, a united war work drive resulted in securing gifts 
of over $200,000,000 for the use of seven such organiza- 
tions — Protestant, Catholic, Hebrew, and non-sectarian. 
Every community had its local branch of the Red Cross, 
where women gathered to make garments and bandages 
for the wounded, or to maintain a canteen service for 
men in uniform. 

German Propaganda. — The German government spent 
millions of dollars in trying to influence American public 
opinion in favor of Germany, or at least in favor of 
neutrality. Newspapers were bought, lecturers and 
writers were hired, pro-German and pacifist associations 
were organized, congressmen were deluged with tele- 
grams, all in an elaborate plot to mislead the people. 
This campaign had little effect. After we entered the 
war, however, an espionage act was passed to punish 
the giving of aid to Germany either by spying or by 
speaking or writing in her favor or against the American 
cause. 

Many German citizens were residents of our country. 
Those who were active in support of Germany, if not con- 
victed and imprisoned for crime, were interned for the 
period of the war. The others were merely required to 
register and to keep away from munitions plants and 
from the water front. An Alien Property Custodian took 
over the control of large factories and other properties 
owned by alien enemies, to hold them or the proceeds 
of their sale until the end of the war. 

The War on the Sea. — Before announcing the renewal 
of unrestricted submarining, Germany had built many 
new submarines. Dr. Zimmermann in his offer to Mexico 
(page 420) sz}d, "The employment of ruthless submarine 



THE GREAT WAR 427 

warfare now promises to compel England to make peace 
in a few months." But this promise was not to be ful- 
filled. For a few months there was an alarming increase 
in the number of ships sunk, but then the Allied de- 
stroyers regained the upper hand. In the work of 
fighting the submarines our navy promptly took part. 
A fleet of our destroyers and other warships, under 
Admiral Sims, was constantly busy in patrol duty and 
in convoying transports. Not only were the Allies 
provided with the supplies they required, but month 
after month our troops were successfully transported 
to France, in British and American ships, to the number 
of more than 2,000,000 by the end of October, 191 8. 

Unable to throttle England or to stop the American 
troop-ships, a few of the German submarines turned their 
attention to our Atlantic coast, beginning in May, 191 8. 
They avoided our convoys and armed ships, but sank a 
number of defenseless sailing vessels and a few unarmed 
steamers. 

The War on Land. — The Russian revolution of March, 
191 7, left the government at first in the hands of men who 
wished to make Russia a democratic republic. They 
were friendly to the Allies, and wished to continue the 
war against Germany as the chief enemy of democracy. 
But their plans were upset by extreme Socialists called 
Bolsheviki (bol-shev-e-kee'), who insisted on a govern- 
ment by workmen only, an immediate peace, a division 
of the land, and all kinds of socialistic reforms. The 
Bolshevik leaders, aided by German gold, launched a 
new revolution and seized the Russian government in 
November, 191 7. They repudiated the debts and obliga- 
tions of Russia, and signed the treaty of Brest-Litovsk 
with Germany, by which they agreed to pay a large in- 
demnity and to give up all claim to immense provinces 
in the west and south. At once the country fell a prey 
to German extortion, famine, anarchy, and civil war. 
In August, 1 91 8, American and other Allied troops were 



428 



RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 



landed in Siberia and in northern Russia, to guard the 
distribution of suppHes and to cooperate with the people 
in resisting the Germans. 

The collapse of Russia enabled the Central Powers to 
transfer many troops from the east to the west. In the 
fall of 191 7 they drove the Italians back to the Piave 
(pyahVay) River in northeastern Italy, capturing many 
guns and prisoners. In France also in the first half of 
191 8 they made large gains against the British and 
the French. There was indeed grave danger of Ger- 




Victorious American troops (marines) in Paris July 4, 1918 

man victory. But American troops arriving and train- 
ing in France, under the command of General Pershing, 
at length restored the balance in numbers. Also, partly 
through American influence, all the Allied armies in 
France and Italy were placed under a single supreme 
commander, the French General Foch (fosh). To com- 
plete the training of the American troops most quickly, 
many of them fought in scattered regiments and divisions 
beside veteran Allies under British and French officers. 

American Victories. — Short lengths of the trench lines, 
at several places between Rheims and the Swiss border, 
were intrusted to the Americans as early as March, 191 8. 
By a sudden attack the Germans took Seicheprey (sash- 



THE GREAT WAR 



429 



pray) In April, but the Americans and French promptly 
rallied and drove out the intruders. Farther west, in 
May, an American force took Cantigny (cahn-teen-yee), 
and held it against strong counter-attacks. American 
marines and soldiers at Chateau-Thierry (sha-to-tyer- 




Ihe battle fiont in France at the end of the last German drive 

ree) stopped the advance of the Germans nearest to Paris 
in June and July, and many Americans helped in the 
counterstrokes by which General Foch drove the Ger- 
mans nearly out of France. 

Meanwhile large American armies were formed to 
take over the conduct of operations on a long stretch of 
the front. On September 12-13 General Pershing took 
the St. Mihiel salient, with many prisoners and guns. 
Then in brilliant and stubborn fighting the Americans 
pressed through the Argonne, reached Sedan (Nov. 7), 
and thus cut one of the main German lines of retreat. 



430 RECONSTRUCTION AND RECENT EVENTS 

Surrender of Germany. — Allied arms, meanwhile, had been 
brilliantly successful in many fields. Bulgaria was forced 
to yield in September, Turkey in October, and Austria- 
Hungary early in November, in the midst of a terrific 
defeat at the hands of the Italians. The German govern- 
ment begged for a truce and agreed to accept a peace 
based on principles that had been laid down by President 
Wilson. The German army, now on the verge of disaster, 
quickly accepted from General Foch the terms of an 
armistice which amounted to virtual surrender Novem- 
ber II, and hostilities ended at ii a.m. on that day. 

The armistice was for a period of thirty days, with 
option to make extensions. Under it, Germany handed 
over thousands of guns of all kinds, many aeroplanes, 
trucks, and railroad trains, and much other property. 
She surrendered all her submarines, and most of her 
other warships. She gave up Allied prisoners of war. 
She stopped destroying Allied property and withdrew 
her troops from occupied territory — Belgium, Alsace- 
Lorraine, Poland, Roumania, Austria-Hungary. She re- 
nounced the treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Moreover, she 
consented to the occupation of the west bank of the 
Rhine by Allied troops, together with important places 
on the east bank. And it was agreed that Germany 
should make reparation for damage done. 

By December the British, Belgian, French, and Amer- 
ican armies were in possession of the large part of Germany 
west of the Rhine, and President Wilson was conferring 
with the heads of the Allied governments in preparation 
for the peace conference. 

In the meantime, ever since November, Austria- 
Hungary and Germany had been in the throes of revolu- 
tion. Both emperors abdicated, as did the monarchs of 
the various German states. In many places the Socialists 
came into power, and in Berlin and other cities there 
was much sharp fighting between different factions. 

Cost of the War. — As the United States did not enter the 



1 



THE GREAT WAR 



431 



war till several years after it began, the American losses 
in killed and wounded were far smaller than those of the 
Allies. Our casualties totaled about 60,000 dead and 
200,000 v.ounded, as compared with several millions 
each for France, Great Britain, and Russia. In the 
outlay of money, howe\'er, the difference was not so 
great. The money cost of the war will probably exceed 




An American aviator (Rickenbacker) with his fighting aeroplane 

$30,000,000,000 for the United States, as compared with 
perhaps twice as much for Great Britain or France. 

The Peace Conference. — The formal peace conference 
began in Paris January 18, 1919, with President Wilson, 
the prime ministers of Great Britain, France, and Italy, 
and many other Allied statesmen in attendance. Many 
questions were referred to committees for investigation 
and reports. President Wilson urged the immediate 
formation of a League of Nations, with the aim of pre- 
venting future wars. While the work of the conference 
was under way, the armistice of November 11 was 
several times extended. 



APPENDIX 



CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES 

We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect 
union, estabhsh justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the 
common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings 
of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this 
Constitution for the United States of America. 

ARTICLE I. 

SECTION I. All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested 
in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and 
House of Repesentatives. • 

SECTION II. — Clause i. The House of Representatives shall be 
composed of members chosen every second year by the people of the 
several States, and the electors in each State shall have the qualifica- 
tions requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State 
Legislature. 

Clause 2. No person shall be a representative who shall not have 
attained to the age of twenty-five years, and been seven years a citizen 
of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant 
of that State in which he shall be chosen. 

Clause 3. Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned 
among the several States which may be included within this Union, 
according to their respective numbers, which shall be determined by 
adding to the whole number of free persons, including those bound to 
service for a term of years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three 
fifths of all other persons. The actual enumeration shall be made within 
three years after the first meeting of the Congress of the United States, 
and within every subsequent term of ten years, in such manner as they 
shall by law direct. The number of representatives shall not exceed 
one for every thirty thousand, but each State shall have at least one 
representative; and until such enumeration shall be made, the State of 
New Hampshire shall be entitled to choose three; Massachusetts, eight; 
Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, one ; Connecticut, five ; New 
York, six ; New Jersey, four ; Pennsylvania, eight ; Delaware, one ; 

I 



2 APPENDIX 

Maryland, six ; Virginia, ten ; North Carolina, five ; South Carolina, 
five ; and Georgia, three. 

Clause 4. When vacancies happen in the representation from any 
State, the executive authority thereof shall issue writs of election to fill 
such vacancies. 

Clause 5. The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker 
and other officers ; and shall have the sole power of impeachment. 

SECTION III.— Clause i. The Senate of the United States shall 
be composed of two senators from each State, [chosen by the Legisla- 
ture thereof,] ^ for six years ; and each senator shall have one vote. 

Clause 2. Immediately after they shall be assembled in conse- 
quence of the first election, they shall be divided as equally as may be 
into three classes. The seats of the senators of the first class shall be 
vacated at the expiration of the second year ; of the second class, at the 
expiration of the fourth year ; and of the third class, at the expiration of 
the sixth year, so that one third may be chosen every second year ; [and 
if vacancies happen by resignation, or otherwise, during the recess of the 
Legislature of any State, the executive thereof may make temporary 
appointments until the next meeting of the Legislature, which shall then 
fill such vacancies.] ' 

Clause 3. No person shall be a senator who shall not have attained 
to the age of thirty years, and been nine years a citizen of the United 
States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State 
for which he shall be chosen. 

Clause 4. The Vice President of the United States shall be president 
of the Senate, but shall have no vote, unless they be equally divided. 

Clause 5. The Senate shall choose their other officers, and also a 
president pro tempore, in the absence of the Vice President, or when he 
shall exercise the office of President of the United States. 

Clause 6. The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeach- 
ments ; when sitting for that purpose, they shall be on oath or affirma- 
tion. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief 
Justice shall preside ; and no person shall be convicted without the con- 
currence of two thirds of the members present. 

Clause 7. Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not extend fur- 
ther than to removal from office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy 
any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States; but the 
party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to indictment, 
trial, judgment, and punishment, according to law. 

SECTION IV.— Clause i. The times, places, and manner of hold- 
ing elections for senators and representatives shall be prescribed in each 

1 Superseded by the Seventeenth Amendment. 



I 



CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES 3 

State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time, by 
law, make or alter such regulations, except as to the places of choosing 
senators. 

Clause 2. The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, 
and such meeting shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they 
shall by law appoint a different day. 



SECTION V. — Clause i. Each house shall be the judge of the 
elections, returns, and qualifications of its own members, and a majority 
of each shall constitute a quorum to do business; but a smaller number 
may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the 
attendance of absent members, in such manner, and under such penal- 
ties, as each house may provide. 

Clause 2. Each house may determine the rules of its proceedings, 
punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence 
of two thirds, expel a member. 

Clause 3. Each house shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and 
from time to time publish the same, excepting such parts as may in 
their judgment require secrecy, and the yeas and nays of the members 
of either house on any question shall, at the desire of one fifth of those 
present, be entered on the journal. 

Clause 4. Neither house, during the session of Congress, shall, 
without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor 
to any other place than that in which the two houses shall be sitting. 

SECTION VI. — Clause i. The senators and representatives shall 
receive a compensation for their services, to be ascertained by law, and 
paid out of the treasury of the United States. They shall in all cases, 
except treason, felony, and breach of the peace, be privileged from 
arrest during their attendance at the session of their respective houses, 
and in going to and returning from the same; and for any speech or 
debate in either house, they shall not be questioned in any other place. 

Clause 2. No senator or representative shall, during the time for 
which he was elected, be appointed to any civil ofifice under the author- 
ity of the United States, which shall have been created, or the emolu- 
ments whereof shall have been increased, during such time; and no 
person holding any office under the United States shall be a member of 
either house during his continuance in ofifice. 

SECTION VII. — Clause i. All bills for raising revenue shall 
originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose 
or concur with amendments, as on other bills. 



4 APPENDIX 

Clause 2. Every bill which shall have passed the House of Repre- 
sentatives and the Senate, shall, before it become a law, be presented to 
the President of the United States; if he approve, he shall sign it, but 
if not, he shall return it, with his objections, to that house in which it 
shall have originated, who shall enter the objections at large on their 
journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such reconsideration, 
two thirds of that house shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, 
together with the objections, to the other house, by which it shall like- 
wise be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of that house, it 
shall become a law. But in all such cases the votes of both houses shall 
be determined by yeas and nays, and the names of the persons voting 
for and against the bill shall be entered on the journal of each house 
respectively. If any bill shall not be returned by the President within 
ten days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, 
the same shall be a law, in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the 
Congress by their adjournment prevent its return, in which case it shall 
not be a law. 

Clause 3. Every order, resolution, or vote to which the concur- 
rence of the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary 
(except on a question of adjournment) shall be presented to the Presi- 
dent of the United States; and before the same shall take efifect, shall 
be approved by him, or being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by 
two thirds of the Senate and House of Representatives, according to the 
rules and limitations prescribed in the case of a bill. 

SECTION VIII. — Clause i. The Congress shall have power to lay 
and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, to pay the debts and 
provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United 
States; but all duties, imposts, and excises shall be uniform through- 
out the United States; 

Clause 2. To borrow money on the credit of the United States; 

Clause 3. To regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among 
the several States, and with the Indian tribes; 

Clause 4. To establish an uniform rule of naturalization, and uni- 
form laws on the subject of bankruptcies thoughout the United States; 

Clause 5. To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign 
coin, and fix the standard of weights and measures; 

Clause 6. To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the 
securities and current coin of the United States; 

Clause 7. To establish post offices and post roads; 

Clause 8. To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by 
securing, for limited times, to authors and inventors the exclusive right 
to their respective writings and discoveries; 

Clause 9. To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court; 



CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES 5 

Clause io. To define and punish piracies and felonies committed 
on the high seas, and offenses against the law of nations; 

Clause ii. To declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, 
and make rules concerning captures on land and water; 

Clause 12. To raise and support armies, but no appropriation of 
money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years; 

Clause 13. To provide and maintain a navy; 

Clause 14. To make rules for the government and regulation of 
the land and naval forces; 

Clause 15. To provide for calling forth the militia to execute 
the laws of the Union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions; 

Clause 16. To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the 
militia, and for governing such part of them as may be employed in the 
service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively the 
appointment of the officers, and the authority of training the militia 
according to the discipline prescribed by Congress: 

Clause 17. To exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatso- 
ever over such district (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by 
cession of particular States, and the acceptance of Congress, become the 
seat of the government of the United States, and to exercise like author- 
ity over all places purchased by the consent of the Legislature of the 
State in which the same shall be, for the erection of forts, magazines, 
arsenals, dock-yards, and other needful buildings; — And 

Clause 18. To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper 
for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers 
vested by this Constitution in the government of the United States, or 
in any department or offfcer thereof. 

SECTION IX. — Clause i. The migration or importation of such 
persons as any of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, 
shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand 
eight hundred and eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such 
importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person. 

Clause 2. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be 
suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public 
safety may require it. 

Clause 3. No bill of attainder or ex-post-facto law shall be passed. 

Clause 4. No capitation or other direct tax shall be laid, unless in 
proportion to the census or enumeration hereinbefore directed to be 
taken. 

Clause 5. No tax or duty shall be laid on articles exported from 
any State. 

Clause 6. No preference shall be given by any regulation of com- 
merce or revenue to the ports of one State over those of another; nor 



6 APPENDIX 

shall vessels bound to, or from, one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or 
pay duties in another. 

Clause 7. No money shall be drawn from the treasury but in con- 
sequence of appropriations made by law: and a regular statement and 
account of the receipts and expenditures of all public money shall be 
published from time to time. 

Clause 8. No title of nobility shall be granted by the United 
States: And no person holding any office of profit or trust under them, 
shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolu- 
ment, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or 
foreign state. 

SECTION X. — Clause i. No State shall enter into any treaty, 
alliance, or confederation; grant letters of marque and reprisal; coin 
money; emit bills of credit; make any thing but gold and silver coin a 
tender in payment of debts; pass any bill of attainder, ex-post-facto law, 
or law impairing the obligation of contracts, or grant any title of 
nobility. 

Clause 2. No State shall, without the consent of the Congress, lay 
any imposts or duties on imports or exports, except what may be abso- 
lutely necessary for executing its inspection laws; and the net produce 
of all duties and im.post, laid by any State on imports or exports, shall 
be for the use of the treasury of the United States; and all such laws 
shall be subject to the revision and control of the Congress. 

Clause 3. No State shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any 
duty of tonnage, keep troops, or ships of war, in time of peace, enter 
into any agreement or compact with another State, or with a foreign 
power, or engage in war, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent 
danger as will not admit of delay. 

ARTICLE n. 

SECTION I. — Clause i. The executive power shall be vested in a 
President of the United States of America. He shall hold his office 
during the term of four years, and, together with the Vice President, 
chosen for the same term, be elected as follows: 

Clause 2. Each State shall appoint, in such manner as the Legisla- 
ture thereof may direct, a number of electors, equal to the whole number 
of senators and representatives to which the State may be entitled in the 
Congress; but no senator or representative, or person holding an office 
of trust or profit under the United States, shall be appointed an elector. 

Clause 3. The Congress may determine the time of choosing the 
electors, and the day on which they shall give their votes; which day 
shall be the same throughout the United States. 



CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES 7 

Clause 4. No person except a natural-born citizen, or a citizen of 
the United States at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall 
be eligible to the ofifice of President; neither shall any person be eligible 
to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty-five years, 
and been fourteen years a resident within the United States. 

Clause 5. In case of the removal of the President from office, or 
of his death, resignation, or inability to discharge the powers and duties 
of the said office, the same shall devolve on the Vice President, and the 
Congress may by law provide for the case of removal, death, resignation, 
or inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what 
officer shall then act as President; and such officer shall act accordingly 
until the disability be removed, or a President shall be elected. 

Clause 6. The President shall, at stated times, receive for his ser- 
vices a compensation which shall neither be increased nor diminished 
during the period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not 
receive within that period any other emolument from the United States, 
or any of them. 

Clause 7. Before he enter on the execution of his office, he shall 
take the following oath or affirmation: — "I do solemnly swear (or 
affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United 
States, and will, to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend 
the Constitution of the United States. 

SECTION II. — Clause i. The President shall be commander in 
chief of the army and navy of the United States, and of the militia of 
the several States, when called into the actual service of the United 
States; he may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer 
in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the 
duties of their respective offices; and he shall have power to grant re- 
prieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in 
cases of impeachment. 

Clause 2. He shall have power, by and with the advice and consent 
of the Senate, to make treaties, provided two thirds of the senators 
present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the advice and 
consent of the Senate shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers 
and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the 
United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided 
for, and which shall be established by law; but the Congress may by 
law vest the appointment of such inferior officers, as they think proper, 
in the President alone, in the courts of law, or in the heads of depart- 
ments. 

Clause 3. The President shall have power to fill up all vacancies 
that may happen during the recess of the Senate, by granting commis- 
sions which shall expire at the end of their next session. 



8 APPENDIX 

SECTION III. — He shall from time to time give to the Congress 
information of the state of the Union, and recommend to their consid- 
eration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he 
may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both houses, or either of 
them, and in case of disagreement between them with respect to the 
time of adjournment, he may adjourn them to such time as he shall 
think proper; he shall receive ambassadors and other public ministers; 
he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed, and shall com- 
mission all the officers of the United States. 

SECTION IV. — The President, Vice President, and all civil officers 
of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, 
and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misde- 
meanors. 

ARTICLE m. 

SECTION I. — The judicial power of the United States shall be 
vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior courts as the Con- 
gress may from time to time ordain and establish. The judges, both 
of the Supreme and inferior courts, shall hold their offices during good 
behavior, and shall, at stated times, receive for their services a compen- 
sation which shall not be diminished during their continuance in 
office. 

SECTION II. — Clause i. The judicial power shall extend to all 
cases, in law and equity, arising under this Constitution, the laws of the 
United States, and treaties made, or which shall be made, under their 
authority; — to all cases afifecting ambassadors, other public ministers, 
and consuls; — to all cases of admirality and maritime jurisdiction; — to 
controversies to which the United States shall be a party; — to contro- 
versies between two or more States; — between a State and citizens of 
another State; — between citizens of difTferent States; — between citizens 
of the same State claiming lands under grants of dififerent States, and 
between a State, or the citizens thereof, and foreign states, citizens, or 
subjects. 

Cl.ause 2. In all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers 
and consuls, and those in which a State shall be party, the Supreme 
Court shall have original jurisdiction. In all the other cases before 
mentioned, the Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction, both as 
to law and fact, with such exceptions and under such regulations as 
the Congress shall make. 

Clause 3. The trial of all crimes, except in cases of impeachment, 
shall be by jury, and such trials shall be held in the State where the said 
crimes shall have been committed; but when not committed within any 



CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES 9 

State, the trial shall be at such place or places as the Congress may by 
law have directed. 

SECTION III. — Clause i. Treason against the United States shall 
consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their 
enemies, giving them aid and comfort. 

Clau.se 2. No person shall be convicted of treason, unless on the 
testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in 
open court. 

Clau.se 3. The Congress shall have power to declare the punish- 
ment of treason; but no attainder of treason shall work corruption of 
blood, or forfeiture, except during the life of the person attainted. 

ARTICLE IV. 

SECTION I. — Full faith and credit shall be given in each State to 
the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other State; 
and the Congress may by general laws prescribe the manner in which 
such acts, records, and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect thereof. 

SECTION II. — Clause i. The citizens of each State shall be en- 
titled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several States. 

Clause 2. A person charged in any State with treason, felony, or 
other crime, who shall flee from justice, and be found in another State, 
shall, on demand of the executive authority of the State from which he 
fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State having jurisdiction of 
the crime. 

Clause 3. No person held to service or labor in one State, under 
the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any 
law or regulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, 
but shall be delivered up on claim of the party to whom such service 
or labor may be due. 

SECTION III. — Clause i. New States may be admitted by the 
Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected 
within the jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by 
the junction of two or more States, or parts of States, without the con- 
sent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Con- 
gress. 

Clause 2. The Congress shall have power to dispose of and make all 
needful rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property 
belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall 
be so construed as to prejudice any claims of the United States, or of 
any particular State. 



lO APPENDIX 

SECTION IV. — The United States shall guarantee to every State in 
this Union a republican form of government, and shall protect each of 
them against invasion, and on application of the Legislature, or of the 
executive (when the Legislature can not be convened) against domestic 
violence. 

ARTICLE V. 

The Congress, whenever two thirds of both houses shall deem it 
necessary, shall propose amendments to this Constitution, or, on the 
application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall 
call a convention for proposing amendments, which, in either case, shall 
be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of this Constitution, when 
ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or by 
conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other mode of 
ratification may be proposed by the Congress; provided that no amend- 
ment which may be made prior to the year one thousand eight hundred 
and eight shall in any manner affect the first and fourth clauses in the 
ninth section of the first article; and that no State, without its consent, 
shall be deprived of its equal sufifrage in the Senate. 

ARTICLE VI. 

Clause i. All debts contracted, and engagements entered into, be- 
fore the adoption of this Constitution, shall be as valid against the 
United States under this Constitution, as under the confederation. 

Ci.AtJSE 2. This Constitution, and the laws of the United States 
which shall be made in pursuance thereof; and all treaties made, or 
which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be 
the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every State shall be 
bound thereby, any thing in the Constitution or laws of any State to the 
contrary notwithstanding. 

Clause 3. The senators and representatives before mentioned, and 
the members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and 
judicial officers, both of the United States and of the several States, 
shall be bound by oath or affirmation to support this Constitution; but 
no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office 
or public trust under the United States. 

ARTICLE VII. 

The ratification of the conventions of nine States shall be sufficient 
for the establishment of this Constitution between the States so ratify- 
ing the same. 

Done in convention, by the unanimous consent of the States 
present, the seventeenth day of September, in the year of our 



AMENDMENTS II 

Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty-seven, and of the 
independence of the United States of America the twelfth. 

In witness whereof, we have hereunto subscribed our names. 

GEORGE WASHINGTON, President, and Deputy from Virginia. 

(Signed also by thirty-eight other deputies, from twelve States.) 

AMENDMENTS 

To the Constitution of the United States, Ratified according to the Pro- 
visions of the Fiflh Article of the Foregoing Constitution. 

ARTICLE I. — Congress shall make no law respecting an establish- 
ment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof ; or abridging 
the freedom of speech, or of the press ; or the right of the people peace- 
ably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of griev- 
ances. 

ARTICLE II. — A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the 
security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms 
shall not be infringed. 

ARTICLE III. — No soldiers shall, in time of peace, be quartered 
in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but 
in a manner to be prescribed by law. 

ARTICLE IV. — The right of the people to be secure in their per- 
sons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and 
seizures, shaU not be violated, and no warrant shall issue, but upon 
probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly de- 
scribing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. 

ARTICLE V. — ■ No person shall be held to answer for a capital or 
otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a 
grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the 
militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger ; nor 
shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in 
jeopardy of life or limb ; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to 
be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or prop- 
erty, without due process of law ; nor shall private property be taken 
for public use, without just compensation. 

ARTICLE VI. — In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall 
enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of 
the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, 
which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to 
be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation ; to be con- 
fronted with the witnesses against him ; to have compulsory process 
for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of 
counsel for his defense. 



12 APPENDIX 

ARTICLE VII. — In suits at common law, where the value in con- 
troversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be 
preserved, and no fact tried by a jury shall be otherwise re-examined in 
any court of th e United States than according to th e rules of common law. 

ARTICLE VIII. — Excessive bail shall not be required, nor exces- 
sive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. 

ARTICLE IX. — The enumeration in the Constitution of certain 
rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by 
the people. 

ARTICLE X. — The powers not delegated to the United States 
by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved 
to the States respectively, or to the people. 

ARTICLE XI. — The judicial power of the United States shall not 
be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or 
prosecuted against one of the United States by citizens of another 
State, or by citizens or subjects of any foreign state. 

ARTICLE XII. — The electors shall meet in their respective States, 
and vote by ballot for President and Vice President, one of whom, at 
least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same State with themselves ; 
they shall name in their ballots the person voted for as President, 
and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice President ; and 
they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and 
of all persons voted for as Vice President, and of the number of votes 
for each, which lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed 
to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the 
president of the Senate; — the president of the Senate shall, in the 
presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the 
certificates, and the votes shall then be counted ; — the person having 
the greatest number of votes for President, shall be the President, if 
such number be a majority of the whole number of electors appointed ; 
and if no person have such majority, then from the persons having the 
highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those voted for as 
President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately, 
by ballot, the President. But in choosing the President, the votes 
shall be taken by States, the representation from each State having 
one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or 
members from two thirds of the States, and a majority of all the 
States shall be necessary to a choice. And if the House of Represent- 
atives shall not choose a President whenever the right of choice shall 
devolve upon them, before the fourth day of March next following, 
then the Vice President shall act as President, as in the case of the 
death or other constitutional disability of the President. The person 
having the greatest number of votes as Vice President, shall be the 



AMENDMENTS 13 

Vice President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of 
electors appointed ; and if no person have a majority, then from the 
two highest numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose the Vice 
President ; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of two thirds of 
the whole number of senators, and a majority of the whole number 
shall be necessary to a choice. But no person constitutionally in- 
eligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice Presi- 
dent of the United States. 

ARTICLE XIII. — Section i. Neither slavery nor involuntary 
servitude, except as a punishment for crime, whereof the person shall 
have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any 
place subject to their jurisdiction. 

Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by 
appropriate legislation. 

ARTICLE XIV. — Section i. All persons born or naturahzed in 
the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens 
of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State 
shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or 
immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State de- 
prive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of 
law, nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protec- 
tion of the laws. 

Section 2. Representatives shall be apportioned among the sev- 
eral States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole 
number of persons in each State excluding Indians not taxed. But 
when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for 
President and Vice President of the United States, representatives in 
Congress, the executive and judicial officers of a State, or the members 
of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of 
such State, being twenty-one years of age and citizens of the United 
States, or in any way abridged except for participation in rebellion or 
other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the 
proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the 
whole number of male citizens twenty -one years of age in such State. 

Section 3. No person shall be a senator or representative in Con- 
gress, or elector of President and Vice President, or hold any office, 
civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, 
having previously taken an oath as a member of Congress, or as an 
officer of the United States, or as a member of any State Legislature, 
or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Con- 
stitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or 
rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies 
thereof. But Congress may, by a vote of two thirds of each house, 
remove such disability. 



14 APPENDIX 

Section 4. The validity of the pubUe debt of the United States, 
authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions 
and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall 
not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall 
assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or 
rebelHon against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emanci- 
pation of any slave ; but all such debts, obligations, and claims shall 
be held illegal and void. 

Section 5. The Congress shall have powe- to enforce, by appro- 
priate legislation, the provisions of this article. 

ARTICLE XV. — Section i. The right of citizens of the United 
States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States, or 
by any State, on account of race, color, or previous condition of servi- 
tude. Section 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this 
article by appropriate legislation. 

ARTICLE XVI. — The Congress shall have power to lay and collect 
taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportion- 
ment among the several States, and without regard to any census or 
enumeration. 

ARTICLE XVII. — The Senate of the United States shall be 
composed of two senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, 
for six years ; and each senator shall have one vote. The electors in 
each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the 
most numerous branch, of the State Legislatures. 

When vacancies happen in the representation of any State in the 
Senate, the executive authority of such State shall issue writs of elec- 
tion to fill such vacancies : Provided, That the Legislature of any 
State may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appoint- 
ments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the Legislature 
may direct. 

This amendment shall not be so construed as to affect the election or 
term of any senator chosen before it becomes valid as part of the Con- 
stitution. 

ARTICLE XVIII. — Section i. After one year from the ratifi- 
cation of this article the manufacture, sale, or transportation of in- 
toxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the expor- 
tation thereof from the United States and all territory subject to the 
jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby prohibited. 

Section 2. The Congress and the several States shall have con- 
current power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation. 

Section 3. This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have 
been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures 
of the several States, as provided in the Constitution, within seven years 
from the date of the submission hereof to the States by the Congress. 



BIOGRAPHIES 

Adams, John, the second President of the United States, was born in 
Braintree, Mass., a farmer's son, in 1735. He graduated at Harvard Col- 
lege, taught school for two years, and began the practice of law when 
twenty-three years of age. He took an active part in the Stamp Act 
agitation and soon became a chief of the revolutionary party. While a 
member of the Continental Congress, he was one of the committee that 
drafted the Declaration of Independence, and was signer of that docu- 
ment. He was one of the commissioners that negotiated the treaty of 
peace with England, and was minister to England for three years. He 
was Vice President during both terms of Washington's presidency, and 
was then President for four years. His peculiarities had something to 
do with his defeat for a second term as President ; for, while honest 
and true to his convictions, he was irritable and somewhat quarrelsome. 
He died July 4, 1826, exactly fifty years after the adoption of the 
Declaration of Independence. 

Adams, John Quincy, the sixth President, son of John Adams, the 
second President, was born in Braintree, Mass., in 1767. Part of his 
boyhood was spent at school in France and Holland, and at other places 
in Europe. He graduated at Harvard College when twenty years old, and 
studied law. At various times he was American minister to Holland, 
Prussia, and Russia, and he was one of the commissioners that made 
peace with England at the close of the War of 1812. At home, also, he 
held various important offices, and after his presidency he sat in the 
lower house of Congress for many years, from 1831 to 1848. This was 
the most brilliant part of his career. He was called "The Old Man 
Eloquent " at eighty years of age. Stricken with apoplexy when about 
to address the House, he died in the Capitol (1848). 

Adams, Samuel, a second cousin of John Adams, was born in Boston 
in 1722, and was educated at Harvard College. When he took the Master 
of Arts degree he defended in his oration the right of the people to resist 
the supreme magistrate " if the commonwealth cannot otherwise be pre- 
served." He played a leading part in the resistance to England, and 
was one of the first to advocate political separation. He proposed the 
Congress of 1774, and was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. 
He was a man of pure and incorruptible life; he was always poor, and 
the king of England failed to buy him from the path of virtue. He 
died in 1803. 

15 



l6 APPENDIX 

Arthur, Chester Alan, the twenty-first President, was born at Fair- 
field, Vermont, in 1830. He graduated at Union College, New York, 
studied law, was admitted to the New York bar in 1853, and held various 
military and political positions. He died in 1886. 

Audubon, John James, was born in Louisiana, then a French colony, in 
1780. He studied drawing under David in Paris. Settling in Pennsyl- 
vania when he was about twenty years old, he tried to acquire a taste for 
farming, but in vain. Every bird note tempted him. He led a roving life, 
constantly making bird drawings of wonderful accuracy. Two hundred 
of his drawings were destroyed by rats, but he began over again and 
made new and better drawings. His " Birds of America," a work un- 
equalled for splendor, was published in England. He died in New York 
city in 185 1. 

Bacon Nathaniel, sometimes called the " Virginia rebel," was born 
in Suffolk, England, in 1630. He was educated in London, and when 
still a young man settled on a large estate in Virginia. Sir William 
Berkeley was at that time the governor of the colony. Berkeley was 
narrow-minded and obstinate. He was opposed to printing-presses and 
schools, and said that he hoped there would be none in Virginia for a 
hundred years. The story of Bacon's rebellion against Berkeley's tyran- 
nical rule is told on page 93. Bacon died in 1677. 

Balboa, Vasco Nunez de, a Spanish nobleman, was born in 1475. After 
discovering the Pacific (p. 26), he received from the king a commission 
to explore its shore, and succeeded in building some ships on the Pacific 
side of the Isthmus. He was recalled, however, by Pedrarias, the jealous 
governor of the Isthmian region, and executed on a charge of treason 
in 1517. 

Baltimore, Lord. See Calvert, Cecil. 

Bancroft, George, the first great American historian, was born in 
Massachusetts in 1800, the son of a Unitarian minister. He graduated 
at Harvard College and studied history in Germany. While Secretary of 
the Navy in 1845, he founded the naval academy at Annapolis. Later he 
served as American minister to England, Prussia, and the German 
Empire. His " History of the United States " is an elaborate and care- 
fully written account of the colonial and revolutionary periods of our 
history. He published it in twelve volumes in 1834-1882; and also in a 
revised edition of six volumes in 1882-1885. He died in 1891. 

Boone, Daniel, the famous hunter and pioneer, was born in Pennsyl- 
vania in 1735, but soon settled in North Carolina. In 1769, with five 
companions, he made a hunting and exploring expedition into the forests 
of Kentucky, and the follov/ing year he spent there alone. A few years 
later he established the first permanent white settlement in the State, 
and built the fort of Boonesboro to defend it. His many successful hunt- 
ing adventures and desperate conflicts with Indians made him the hero 



BIOGRAPHIES 1/ 

of pioneers. The rapid settlement of Kentucky having cut off his favorite 
pursuits, he removed in 1795 to Missouri, where he died twenty-five years 
later. 

Bradford, William, was born at Austeriield, Yorkshire, England, in 
1589, and inherited a small farm. Before coming of age he became one 
of the leaders of the Separatist church at Scrooby, was imprisoned 
several months on account of his faith, and escaped to Holland. He was 
one of the exploring party that landed at Plymouth, December 21, 1620 
(p. 56); on his return to the " Mayflower" he learned that his wife had 
fallen overboard and drowned during his absence. He married again in 
1623, and died in 1657. He is noted not only as a wise and able governor 
(P- 57) y but also as the author of a valuable " History of the Plymouth 
Plantation," covering the period of 1602 to 1647. Bradford's manuscript 
of this book, which had not yet been printed, disappeared from its place 
in the Old South Meetinghouse during the British occupation of Boston 
(1775-76). Eighty years later it was found in an English library, and in 
1897 it was brought back to Massachusetts. 

Bryant, William CuUen, was born in Massachusetts in 1794, and was 
educated at Williams College. He practiced law ten years, but in 1825 he 
became an editor in New York city, and from the following year. till his 
death, as editor-in-chief of the " Evening Post," he exercised a great in- 
fluence on journalism. He was a graceful orator, also ; but he is best 
remembered for his thoughtful and carefully wrought poems. " Thana- 
topsis," perhaps the most famous of them, was written when the poet 
was in his nineteenth year. He died in 1878. 

Buchanan, James, the fifteenth President, was born in Pennsylvania in 
1791. He became a lawyer, and entered political life as a distraction from 
his grief over the death of his betrothed. After a brilliant career as 
Congressman and Senator from Pennsylvania, and as Secretary of State 
under President Polk, he was appointed minister to England by Pierce. 
In the presidency his chief aim was to prevent the disruption of the 
Democratic party, but in this he failed, becoming himself a Southern 
sympathizer. When secession was threatened, after the election of i860, 
he opposed it with peaceful means only, claiming that the President had 
no power or right to use force. He died in 1868, the only President who 
never married. 

Cabot, John, or Juan Caboto in the Venetian dialect, was for many 
years unknown to fame, his discoveries (p. 25) being formerly ascribed 
to his son, Sebastian. No one knows when he was born, but it is believed 
that he died in 1498, while on his second voyage; for there is no record 
of his return. Sebastian Cabot became a man of much renown. He 
was Pilot Major of Spain from 1518 to 1548, when he returned to England 
and became governor of a company engaged in discovery and trade on 
the north coast of Europe. He died in 1557 or soon after 



I 8 APPENDIX 

Calhoun, John Caldwell, statesman, was born in South Carolina in 1782. 
He graduated at Yale College in 1804, studied law, and in 181 1 became 
a member of Congress from South Carolina. He was Secretary of War 
under President Monroe, and was elected Vice President in 1824 and 
again in 1828. Having resigned this office, he was chosen Senator from 
South Carolina in 1832, and continued in the Senate the rest of his life, 
excepting the brief interval of 1843-45, during part of which he was 
Secretary of State under Tyler. He was one of the chief advocates of 
the doctrine of State sovereignty and the rights of nullification and 
secession, in which he was opposed by Daniel Webster in debate. He 
died in Washington in 1850. 

Calvert, Cecil, second Lord Baltimore, was born about 1605. He spent 
£40,000 on. the expedition that settled Maryland (p. 74). He never 
visited the colony, but governed it through deputies until his death, in 
1675. He was a sincere and steadfast Catholic, singularly free from 
the bigotry characteristic of his age, and his rule was marked by good 
judgment and moderation. 

Carnegie, Andrew, manufacturer and philanthropist, was born in 
Dunfermline, Scotland, in 1837. His father, who was in very humble 
circumstances, came to this country with his family when Andrew was 
II years of age and settled at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He came be- 
cause he believed that his sons would have better opportunities in a 
country having a republican government. At the age of 12, Andrew 
Carnegie went to work as bobbin-boy in a cotton factory. By toiling 
from morning till night he earned a little over a dollar a week. At 14 
he became a telegraph messenger boy at $2.50 a week. He learned 
telegraphy, and soon became an operator at $300 a year. His energy 
and skill attracted the attention of Thomas A. Scott, the president of 
the Pennsylvania Railroad, who offered him a position as clerk at $35 
a month. He remained with the company for thirteen years. In the 
meanwhile he was successful in several business ventures, organized a 
sleeping-car company and a bridge-building company, and at the out- 
break of the Civil War was made superintendent of military railways. 
He later became owner of the Homestead Steel Works at Pittsburgh, 
and by introducing new methods of construction built up a business 
which produced a colossal fortune. He has given many millions for 
the founding of libraries and the aid of public institutions in all parts 
of the United States and in his native Scotland. 

Champlain, Samuel de, the founder of the French power in America, 
was born in France in 1567. The story of his predecessors in the New 
World, Verazano, Cartier, and others, is told in Chapter IV. of this 
volume (pp. 32-36). Quebec was founded by Champlain in 1608, and 
in the next year he discovered the lake which has since been known by his 
name. He was for many years governor of Canada. He died at Que- 
bec in 1635.. 



BIOGRAPHIES I9 

Clark, George Rogers, was born in Virginia in 1752. He became a sur- 
veyor, and removed to the upper Ohio valley when he was twenty years 
old. At the outbreak of the Revolution he secured the organization of 
Kentucky as a county of Virginia, and was appointed major of militia in 
that region. He wrested the country north of the Ohio from British 
and Indian foes, and thus saved it to the United States (p. 174), but 
his services were unrewarded and his latter years were spent in poverty. 
He died in 1818. 

Clay, Henry, was considered by those who heard him speak the great- 
est of American orators. He was born in Virginia in 1777, and passed 
his youth in poverty. He studied law, and removed to Lexington, Ken- 
tucky, to practice. He became a favorite orator and was soon sent to 
Congress. For many years he served as Speaker of the House and as 
Senator. He was the chief advocate of the Missouri Compromise, of the 
compromise tariff of 1833, and of the compromise of 1850. A man of 
singularly winning personality, he was idolized by his friends, and 
respected even by his enemies. He was three times a candidate for 
President, but was never elected. He died in 1852. 

Cleveland, Grover, twenty-second and twenty-fourth President, was 
born at Caldwell, New Jersey, but his parents moved to Fayetteville, 
New York, when he was four years old. His full name was Stephen 
Grover Cleveland, but he discarded the first name. He studied law and 
practiced very successfully in Buffalo. He was elected mayor of Buffalo 
in 1881, and governor of New York in 1882 by an unprecedented plurality. 
Elected President in 1884, he failed of reelection in 1888, but was again 
elected in 1892. He died in 1908. 

Clinton, De Witt, governor of New York, was born in Orange 
County, New York, in 1769. He was chosen to the United States senate 
in 1802, but resigned to become mayor of New York city, a position 
which he held for thirteen years. He was elected governor of the state 
in 1817, and it was chiefly through his influence that the Erie canal was 
successfully completed (p. 258). He was again elected governor in 1824, 
and reelected in 1826. He died in 1828, while still in office. 

Columbus, Christopher, the discoverer of America, was born in Genoa, 
Italy, the son of a humble wool-comber. He got some education, knew 
Latin, and drew charts exceedingly well. He was a man of great per- 
severance and held to his idea of sailing to the westward in search of 
Asia, in spite of many disheartening reverses. After his great voyage 
of 1492 he was loaded with honors and was given control of the Spanish 
settlements. In 1500 he was deposed from the governorship of his 
colonies and was sent home in chains. But Ferdinand and Isabella were 
shocked at this degradation and he was set free. Columbus's last voyage 
to the west, in 1502, was unfortunate. He died in Spain in the year 
1506. 



20 APPENDIX 

Cooper, Peter, philanthropist, was born In New York city in 1791. 
In the course of a long life he was ever changing his trade. He made 
tents, brewed ale, made bricks, worked at carriage-making, worked at 
machines for shearing cloth, made cabinet-work, and then invested all his 
resources in a glue factory, making many other things at the same time. 
He then bought iron works and built a small locomotive, the first in the 
country, which proved that locomotives could run round a curve. He 
established an iron mill and the largest blast furnaces then known, in 
Philipsburg, Pennsylvania. He was president of the first Atlantic Cable 
Company. He founded, in 1854, his Cooper Union, an institution 
designed to aid the young in acquiring knowledge useful in earning a 
living. It has a library, an art school, etc. The building cost $750,000. 
He gave away about four millions in all, and died worth about two 
millions. He died in 1883. 

Davis, Jefferson, was a native of Kentucky and was born June 3, 1808. 
He was educated at Transylvania University and graduated at West 
Point in 1828. He left the army in 1835 ; in 1845 he became a member 
of Congress. In the Mexican War he was colonel of a Mississippi regi- 
ment, and was distinguished for courage and coolness in action. He 
served several years as United States Senator for Mississippi, and was 
Secretary of War in President Pierce's cabinet. He again entered the 
Senate in 1857, but resigned when Mississippi seceded in 1861. He was 
President of the Confederate States of America during the whole period 
of their existence. His death occurred December 6, 1889. 

De Soto, Fernando, Spanish adventurer, was born in 1496. He was 
connected with several exploring expeditions in Central America, and in 
1533 joined Pizarro in the conquest of Peru. He returned to Spain 
with a fortune of $500,000, and married a lady of noble birth. Soon 
afterward he was made governor of Cuba, and authorized to explore 
and conquer Florida (p. 31). He died in 1542, and was buried in the 
Mississippi River. 

Dewey, George, was born in Vermont in 1837, and graduated from the 
Naval Academy at Annapolis in 1858. He served in Farragut's fleet in 
the capture of New Orleans in 1862, and the next year was on board a 
ship that was sunk in trying to pass Port Hudson. Continuing in the 
navy, he had risen to the rank of commodore when the war with Spain 
began, in April, 1898. For his brilliant victory in Manila Bay (p. 389). 
he received the thanks of Congress and the rank of admiral. 

Drake, Sir Francis, a famous English navigator of the sixteenth cen- 
tury. In 1570, during a voyage in which he captured $800,000 in treasure 
from the Spaniards, he visited upper California and gave it the name 
of New Albion. Albion was one of the names then applied to England. 
Continuing westward across the Pacific and Indian Oceans, he was the 
first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe. In 1588 he commanded 



BIOGRAPHIES 21 

a division of the English fleet in its great victory over the Spanish 
Armada. He died in 1596. 

Edison, Thomas Alva, inventor, vsras born at Milan, Ohio, in 1847. He 
began life as a train boy. Having learned telegraphy, he became an 
operator and made a number of inventions connected with the telegraph. 
He established an immense laboratory, first at Menlo Park and then at 
West Orange, New Jersey, and with a corps of trained assistants he 
made invention a highly successful profession. The world owes to him 
the incandescent electric light, manv improvements of the telephone, tele- 
graph, etc., the phonograph, and hundreds of other inventions. He has 
received high honors from foreign governments. 

Emerson, Ralph Waldo, poet and essayist, was born in Boston, Massa- 
chusetts, in 1803, and graduated at Harvard College at eighteen years of 
age. He became one of the best-known lecturers in the United States and 
traveled extensively. A philosopher and independent thinker, he exerted 
a great influence on American thought and literature, although not a 
prolific writer. He died in 1882, at Concord, Massachusetts, which had 
been his home for nearly half a century. 

Farragut, David Glasgow, was born near Knoxville, Tennessee, in 
July, 1801. His father, a native of the Balearic Isles, having died in 
1808, he was sent to school at Chester, Pennsylvania, by Commodore 
Porter. H« was appointed midshipman in the navy when less than 
ten years of age, and saw service in the War of 1812 and the war with 
Mexico. It was in the Civil War, however, that he became famous. 
After the capture of New Orleans (p. 324), he was made rear-admiral. 
After the battle of Mobile Bay (p. 348), the city of New York gave 
him a purse of $50,000, and he was made vice-admiral. In 1866 Congress 
created the rank of Admiral for him. He was the first to hold that 
rank in the American navy. He died in 1870. • 

Field, Cyrus West, was born in INIassachusetts in 1819, the son of a 
minister. In his boyhood he was a clerk in New York city, and later 
he became a prosperous merchant. For his success in laying the first 
Atlantic telegraph cable (p. 399), he received many honors at home and 
abroad. He was afterward engaged in the construction of elevated rail- 
roads in New York and in other large enterprises. He died in 1892. 

Fillmore, Millard, thirteenth President, was born in New York in 1800. 
His school education was scanty, but he became a lawyer and rose to 
eminence in his profession. In his State he secured the passage of a 
law abolishing imprisonment for debt. He succeeded to the presidency 
on the death of Taylor in July, 1850. He died in 1874. 

Franklin, Benjamin, the son of a tallow chandler, was born in Boston 
in 1706. He learned the printer's trade in his brother's office. He went 
to Philadelphia at seventeen. After many vicissitudes he rose to the 
ownership of a printing office. He published " Poor Richard's Almanac," 



22 APPENDIX 

which became famous for its proverbs. He edited and printed the best 
newspaper pubHshed in the American colonies. He proved, in 1752, that 
lightning and electricity are the same by means of a famous experiment 
with a kite. This discovery and the invention of the lightning rod made 
him widely celebrated. He founded libraries, a hospital, and a uni- 
versity. He went to London more than once as agent for his own and 
other colonies, and he promoted the repeal of the Stamp Act. He was 
one of the committee of Congress appointed to draft the Declaration of 
Independence, and was a signer of that document. Soon afterward he 
went to France as ambassador. It was his skilful hand that negotiated 
the treaty of alliance with that country, without which the Revolution 
could hardly have succeeded. He assisted in making the treaty of peace 
with England in 1782 and took part in framing the Constitution of the 
United States in 1787. He died in Philadelphia in 1790. 

Fremont, John Charles, was born in Savannah, Georgia, in 1813, the 
son of a French immigrant who died when John was five years old. 
He was educated at Charleston College, became an engineer, and made 
himself famous by his explorations in the Rocky Mountain region 
(p- '^TZ)- He took part in the seizure of California during the war with 
Mexico, and was chosen one of the first Senators from that State. He 
was the Republican candidate for President in 1856. In the Civil War 
he served in Missouri and the Shenandoah valley as major-general of 
volunteers. He died in 1890. 

Fulton, Robert, inventor, was born in Pennsylvania in 1765. After 
attaining success as a miniature painter, he went to London and studied 
art under Benjamin West. He developed considerable mechanical ability 
and made several inventions ; among them were submarine torpedoes and 
a submarine boat, exhibited in France and in England, but neither in- 
vention was successful. His first experiments with the steamboat were 
made on the Seine River in France; but his great successes were 
achieved on the Hudson and the Ohio (see pp. 228, 229). He died in 
New York in 1815. 

Garfield, James Abram, the twentieth President, was born in Ohio in 
1831. He graduated at Williams College in 1856, and became a lawyer. 
He entered the Union army as colonel in 1861, and rose to the rank of 
major-general of volunteers, but resigned to take a place in Congress as 
representative and later became senator. He died September 19, 1881, in 
the first year of his presidency. 

Goodyear, Charles, inventor, was born in New Haven, Connecticut, in 
1800. He turned his attention to india rubber in 1834, and from then 
till his death he was occupied with the problem of making from it a 
material that should be both solid and elastic. The trouble with the 
first articles of india rubber was that they would turn soft and sticky in 
warm weather. Goodyear experimented with many different substances 



BIOGRAPHIES 23 

in connection with the crude rubber gum, and was often in poverty and 
debt. In 1844 he obtained a patent for the successful method of vulcan- 
izing rubber. He died in debt in i860. 

Grant, Ulysses S., eighteenth President, was born in Ohio, April 27, 
1822. He was named Hiram Ulysses Grant, but was entered by mistake 
as Ulysses Simpson Grant at West Point, where he graduated in 1843. 
In the Mexican War he distinguished himself both in Taylor's and in 
Scott's campaigns. He resigned from the army in 1854. When the Civil 
War broke out he was clerk in his father's leather store on a bare living 
salary. He then became mustering officer for the State of Illinois, and 
was appointed colonel of the Twenty-first Illinois regiment. This was 
the first step in his great military career, which forms a large part of 
the history of the Civil War. After serving two terms as President he 
retired to private life and made a trip round the world. His property 
having been lost in business, he wrote his "Personal Memoirs" (1885), 
from the copyright of which his widow realized about half a million 
dollars. He died on the 23rd of July, 1885. 

Gray, Asa, born in New York State in 1810, was a very eminent botan- 
ist, and the author of numerous works in his branch of science. In 1842 
he was chosen to the Fisher Chair of Natural History in Harvard Uni- 
versity, where he remained till his death. When, in 1864, a building was 
provided for his collection, it numbered two hundred thousand speci- 
mens, and it had doubled by the time of his death. He died January 
30, 1888. 

Gray, Robert, discoverer, was born in Rhode Island in 1755. As cap- 
tain of the ship " Columbia," he was the first to carry the American flag 
around the world, which he did in a trading voyage in 1787-90. On a 
second voyage he discovered the mouth of the great river to which he 
gave the name of his ship. It was largely by this discovery that the 
United States secured claim to the Oregon country (p. 271). He died in 
1806. 

Greene, Nathanael, Revolutionary general, was born in Rhode Island, 
of Quaker parents, in 1742. He was elected a member of the colonial 
Assembly in 1770, and on the outbreak of the Revolution was made a 
brigadier-general and placed in command of the Rhode Island contingent 
army. He gained Washington's confidence and held important commands 
in most of the battles which Washington fought ; but his great fame was 
earned in his Southern campaigns (pages 182-184). In reward for these, 
Georgia and the Carolinas made him large grants of property, and after 
the war he made his home near Savannah. He died in 1786. 

Hamilton, Alexander, statesman, was born in the island of Nevis, in 
the West Indies, in January, 1757, but was sent to the continent of Amer- 
ica to be educated. While a student of King's College, now Columbia 
University, New York, and but seventeen years of age, he made a speech 



24 APPENDIX 

on the Revolutionary side that stamped him at once as a wonderful youth. 
He also wrote several anonymous pamphlets that attracted great attention 
and were attributed to this and that leading man of the time. When 
nineteen years old he took charge of an artillery company, and so dis- 
tinguished himself that Washington put him on his own staff. He led 
the assault on one of the British outworks at Yorktown. After serving 
as a member of the Constitutional Convention (p. 193), he established 
and wrote much of " The Federalist," which was most influential in 
securing the adoption of the Federal Constitution. As first Secretary 
of the Treasury he held Congress to the duty of paying every dollar of 
the national debt at its face value (p. 202). He retired from office on 
account of poverty, but his law practice was afterwards very profitable. 
During the trouble with France he was in 1798 made inspector general 
of the army, and for a short time was the commanding general. He 
declined the office of chief justice. He was killed in a duel with Aaron 
Burr in 1804. 

Hancock, John, statesman, was born in Massachusetts in 1737, and 
graduated at Harvard College at seventeen. He became a rich merchant, 
and one of the foremost revolutionary leaders in the colony. He was 
President of the Continental Congress, 1775-77, and the first signer of 
the Declaration of Independence. During and after the war he was for 
many years governor of Massachusetts. He died in 1793. 

Harrison, Benjamin, twenty-third President, was a grandson of Wil- 
liam Henry Harrison, the ninth President. He was born in Ohio in 
1833, and graduated at Miami University at the age of eighteen. He 
studied law and practiced in Indianapolis, Indiana. During the Civil 
War he served in the Union army and rose to the rank of brigadier- 
general. He was United States Senator in 1881-87. After the term of 
his presidency he practiced law in Indianapolis, where he died in 1901. 

Harrison, William Henry, ninth President, was born in Virginia in 
1773 and was educated in Hampden-Sydney College. He entered the 
army as an ensign in 1791 andwas aide-de-camp to General Wayne in his 
campaign against the Indians in Ohio. He was secretary of the North- 
west Territory, delegate in Congress, first governor of Indiana Territory, 
and superintendent of Indian affairs. His successful military career in 
1811-14 (see pp. 232, 2yj, 238) was followed by many years of service in 
important civil offices. His death took place in 1841, one month after 
his inauguration as President. 

Hayes, Rutherford Burchard, nineteenth President, was born in Ohio 
in 1822, and graduated at the Harvard Law School in 1845. He became 
a major in the Union army in 1861 ; rose to be brigadier-general o£ 
volunteers. After the war he was sent to Congress and was three times 
governor of Ohio before he was elected President of the United States. 
He died in 1893. 



BIOGRAPHIES 2$ 

Henry, Patrick, was born in Virginia in 1736.. He was educated 
chiefly in a school taught by his father. After faiHng several times in 
farming and business he became a very successful lawyer. In 1763 he 
argued the Parsons' cause, as told on p. 144, and leaped at once into 
fame. In the legislature and elsewhere he was a radical revolutionist 
(see p. 146), but later became an anti-federalist. He was governor of 
Virginia eight years, and declined the chief justiceship of the United 
States and several other high offices. He died in 1799. 

Hooker, Thomas, one of the founders of Connecticut, was an eminent 
minister, born in England in 1586. Persecuted for his religion, he went 
to Holland and then in 1633 to New England. After he and his flock 
settled Hartford (p. 64), his influence in the new Connecticut colony 
was very great. He died in 1647. 

Howe, Elias, inventor, was born in Massachusetts in 1819, the son 
of a farmer and miller. He worked in machine shops in Lowell and 
Boston. In 1846 he patented his sewing-machine. He tried in vain 
to introduce it in England. On his return, he found his patent infringed, 
and had a long struggle in the courts before he could make good his 
rights. In the end he realized a fortune from it. He served as a 
volunteer private in the Civil War, and died in 1867. 

Hudson, Henry. The time of Hudson's birth is not known. In 1607 
he tried to find a route to China for an English company, by sailing 
straight across the north pole. Failing in that, the next year he tried 
to find a passage to the East Indies by sailing to the northeast. Here 
he failed again, but he gained a reputation as a bold explorer. The 
year after thiat, 1609, both France and Holland were bidders for his 
services. He sailed for Holland; and, as is told on page 69, he ex- 
plored the coast of North America from Chesapeake Bay north and 
into Hudson River. The year following he tried to find China by the 
northwest passage. He sailed into the great bay which bears his name. 
There a part of his crew mutinied, put him and some of his men into an 
open boat, and sailed for England, leaving them to perish. 

Irving, Washington, author, was born in New York in 1783. His 
works are marvels of clearness. His " Diedrich Knickerbocker's New 
York " is full of quaint wit, and his " Sketch Book " rivals anything of 
Goldsmith's. He spent many years in Europe, and was for four years 
American minister to Spain. He died in 1859. 

Jackson, Andrew, seventh President, was born in North Carolina in 
1767. He joined the Revolutionary army when he was but thirteen 
years old. After the war he studied law and settled in Nashville, 
Tennessee. He was a member of the Senate of the United States and 
judge of the Supreme Court in Tennessee. As an officer of the Ten- 
nessee militia, he led the Tennesseeans against the Creeks and broke 
their power (p. 241). Just before the close of the War of 1812 he 
formed an army at New Orleans out of such men as he could find. 



26 APPENDIX 

built breastworks, and won a brilliant victory (p. 243). He failed of 
election in 1824 (p. 254), but was President from 1829 to 1837 (PP- ^62- 
267). He died in 1845, the last President who had had anything to do 
with the Revolution. 

Jackson, Thomas Jonathan, immortal under the name of "Stonewall " 
Jackson, was born in Clarksburg, Virginia (now West Virginia), 
January 21, 1824. He graduated at West Point in 1846. In the Mexican 
War he was twice brevetted. Resigning frt»m the army in 1852, he 
became a professor in the Virginia Military Institute. He entered the 
Confederate service at the beginning of the war. During the first 
battle of Bull Run he resisted a charge with so much steadiness as to 
win for himself the appellation of Stonewall Jackson. The prompt- 
ness and rapidity of his marches and the obstinate courage he showed 
on the battlefield made him an important factor in the Civil War. 
He was shot by mistake by his own men, at the battle of Chancellors- 
ville, and died a few days later (1863). 

Jefferson, Thomas, was born near Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1743. 
He was educated at William and Mary College, became a success- 
ful lawyer, and was soon recognized as the most accomplished 
general scholar in the colonies. He excelled in mathematics 
and knew five languages besides his own. From 1769 till the 
Revolution he was a member of the Virginia House of Bur- 
gesses. While a member of the Continental Congress he wrote 
the first draft of the Declaration of Independence, one of the most 
famous of state papers. Again in the Virginia legislature he carried 
through many important reforms, and for two years was governor of 
the State. During the critical and trying period of five years after the 
war he was our minister to France. He was Washington's first 
Secretary of State, and in 1796 was elected Vice President (p. 211). He 
was the third President of the United States (p. 215), and to him was 
due the purchase of the Louisiana territory west of the Mississippi. 
He died on the 4th of July, 1826, fifty years after the adoption of the 
Declaration of Independence, and the same day that John Adams died. 

Johnson, Andrew, seventeenth President, was born in North Carolina 
in 1808. He learned the tailor's trade. Having removed to Tennessee in 
1826, he married there and was assisted by his wife in educating himself. 
Becoming a good speaker, he was sent to the State legislature and to 
Congress. Later he was elected governor of his State. He did all in 
his power to keep Tennessee in the Union, and he was the only South- 
ern Senator who retained his place in the United States Senate when 
his State seceded. After his presidency he reentered politics, and was 
returned to the Senate in 1875, but died the same year. 

Johnson, Sir William^ was born in Ireland in 1715, but came to 
North America in 1738, and settled among the Mohawk Indians, whose 



BIOGRAPHIES 27 

language he learned and over whom he acquired great influence. He 
was appointed superintendent of Indian affairs for the province of New 
York, and- acted as such till his death. In the French and Indian War 
he played an important part in the operations in and near New York 
(pp. 112-114). He received a grant of 100,000 acres north of the 
Mohawk River, and built there his famous home, Johnson Hall, where 
he died in 1774. 

Johnston, Joseph Eggleston, general, was born in Virgmia in 1807. 
He graduated at West Point in 1829. He was distinguished in engineer- 
ing work, and in the Mexican War. He resigned from the army in 
1861, and entered the Confederate service, where he displayed great 
ability (pp. 114, 326, 342, 347). After the war he was a member of 
Congress one term. He died in 1891. 

Jones, John Paul, sailor, was born in Scotland in 1747. He began 
a seafaring life at twelve years of age, and in 1773 went to Virginia. On 
the outbreak of the Revolution he was given a commission in the 
American navy. He had captured many prizes on both sides of the 
Atlantic, before his famous fight with the "Serapis" (p. 170). Some years 
later he served as a Russian rear-admiral against the Turks. He died 
in Paris, France, in 1792. 

Lafayette, Marquis de, was of an illustrious French family. Con- 
trary to the command of the King of France, he freighted a ship at his 
own expense, and landed in America in 1777 to offer his services as a 
simple volunteer. He was made a major-general, and by prudent con- 
duct and courage he won the favor of Washington. He was wounded 
at Brandywine and distinguished himself at Monmouth. He was in 
France in 1779-80, when he induced the King to send Rochambeau to 
America. He conducted the campaign in Virginia that led up to the 
capture of Cornwallis. He did what he could to aid Louis XVI against 
the Jacobins, and was obliged to escape to Flanders. He was five 
years in an Austrian prison. He visited America in 1824-25 as the 
nation's guest, and was granted $200,000 in money and a township of 
land by the American Congress. He died in 1834. 

La Salle, Robert Cavalier de, explorer, was born in France in 1643. 
, He became a Jesuit, but withdrew from the order before he went to 
' Canada. After his great explorations in the Mississippi valley (p. 96), 
he went to France, and in 1684 tried to plant a colony at the mouth of 
the Mississippi. His fleet sailed too far west in the Gulf of Mexico 
before landing, and the colonists were left on the shore of Texas. Some 
of them remained there and perished; others, with La Salle himself, 
started overland for Canada, but on the way they murdered him, in 
1687. 

Lee, Robert Edward, son of " Light-Horse Harry " Lee of the 
Revolution, was born in Virginia, January 19, 1807. He graduated 



28 APPENDIX 

at West Point in 1829, second in his class. He distinguished himself 
in the Mexican War as Scott's chief engineer. For three years he 
was in command of the Military Academy at West Point. When his 
State, Virginia, seceded from the Union, he thought himself obliged to 
go with it. He resigned his commission in the army of the United 
States, and was made commander of the Virginia State forces and later 
a Confederate general. In March, 1862, he was made commander in 
chief of the Confederate forces. To his surpassing ability was due the 
stubbornness of the struggle carried on by the Confederates between- 
Richmond and Washington. When the war was over General Lee took 
the result manfully and devoted himself to the building up of Wash- 
ington College (now the Washington and Lee University), of which he 
was made president. He died on the 12th of October, 1870. 

Leif Ericson, a Norse adventurer, is said to have sailed from Green- 
land about the year 1000, and to have discovered a country far to the 
south which he called Vinland (p. 9). 

Lincoln, Abraham, the sixteenth President, was born in Kentucky, 
February 12, 1809. He was taken to Indiana when he was a little boy, 
and when that country was wild and rough. Later he removed with 
his father to Illinois. Abraham studied hard to get an education. The 
schools were few and the teachers ignorant, but Lincoln trained himself 
to think. He worked on a farm, went to New Orleans on a flatboat, 
acted as clerk in a country store, learned and practiced surveying, and 
then studied law. He served several terms in the Legislature of Illinois 
and one term as ^ member of Congress. He became a leading lawyer 
and politician in his State, and gained a national fame by a series of 
debates in which he was engaged with Senator Douglas, in 1858. In 
i860 he was elected President, and the rest of his history is that of the 
country. His death took place on April 15, 1865. 

Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth, poet, was born in Portland, Maine, 
in 1807, and graduated at Bowdoin College, at eighteen years of age. 
He spent several years in Europe. He was a professor of modern 
languages, first at Bowdoin and then at Harvard. His long life was 
passed in unwearied reading and study. His books were read in 
nearly all the schools of Europe, and they have been translated into 
nearly all the languages of Europe. He died in March, 1882. His 
bust is in the Poet's Corner at Westminster Abbey, the only tribute 
of the kind to any American. 

McCormick, Cyrus Hall, inventor, was born in Virginia in 1809. At 
the age of twenty-two he built the first practical reaping machine that 
was ever made (p. 292), He afterwards removed to Chicago, where he 
established large shops for the manufacture of his machines. He died 
in 1884. 

Macdonough, Thomas, who defeated the British squadron on Lake 



BIOGRAPHIES 29 

Champlain in 1814 (p. 242), was born in Delaware in 1783. As a re- 
ward for service, he was made captain in the United States navy, and 
Congress voted him a gold medal. He afterwards commanded the 
United States squadron in the Mediterranean, and died at sea in 1825. 

McKinley, William, twenty-lifth President, was born in Ohio in 1843. 
He enlisted as a private in Ohio infantry, and served throughout the Civil 
"War; was made a major for gallant and meritorious service. After the 
war he studied law and settled in Canton, Ohio. He served several terms 
in Congress, and as Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee he 
prepared the McKinley Bill of 1890. In 1891 he was elected Governor of 
Ohio, in 1893 was reelected, and in 1896 was chosen President of the 
United States (p. 386). On September 6, 190T, a few months after be- 
ginning his second term as President, he was shot by an assassin at the 
Buffalo Pan-American Exposition, and he died on September 14. 

Madison, James, fourth President, was born in Virginia in 1751. 
He graduated at Princeton, at twenty years of age. He served many 
years as member of the Virginia Legislature, and as member of 
Congress. He was a delegate in the convention that drafted the 
Constitution of the United States and one of the ablest advocates of its 
adoption. He wrote many of the ablest papers in the "The Federalist." 
He was also author of the Virgmia Resolutions of 1798 (p. 213). 
Secretary of State for eight years, he succeeded Jefferson as President, 
serving the two terms ending in 1817 (pp. 230-246). He died in 1836. 
Magellan, Ferdinand, or, as his name is written in Portuguese, 
Fernao de Magalhacs, was born m Portugal, about 1480. He served 
the Portuguese in the East Indies, but having received a slight from 
the Portuguese government, he publicly renounced his country and 
entered the service of the King of Spam. He started round the world 
in 1519. On the coast of Patagonia he put down a mutiny, in which 
three of his five ships had engaged. Later, having lost one ship, he en- 
tered the straits that bear his name, in October, 1520. One ship deserted 
him, but with the three others he sailed out upon the Pacific Ocean, 
which he so named because he iound its waters quiet. He went on to 
the Philippines, where he was killed in a battle with the natives, in 
.1521. One ship, the "Victoria," put out alone and sailed the rest of the 
■'way to Spain, not daring to touch anywhere. She reached home with 
eighteen men barely alive, being the first ship that ever sailed round the 
world. 

Marshall, John, the great Chief Justice of the United States (p. 214), 
was born in Virginia in 1755, the eldest of a family of fifteen children. 
He was educated mostly at home, and then studied law. He served 
several years as an officer in the Revolutionary army. Before his appoint- 
ment as Chief Justice he had held various legislative, ■ diplomatic, and 
Cabinet positions. He died in 1835. 



30 APPENDIX 

Minuit, Peter, one of the Dutch governors of New York, was born 

in Rhenish Prussia in 1580. He was the founder of New York City 
(p. 70). After leaving the Dutch service he entered that of Sweden, 
and founded a colony on the west side of Delaware Bay. He erected 
Fort Christina, near the present city of Wilmington (p. ^2), and died 
there in 1641. 

Monroe, James, fifth President, was born in Virginia in 1758, gradu- 
ated at William and Mary College in 1776, and joined the Revolutionary 
army immediately. He distinguished himself in several battles. He was 
United States Senator, Minister to France, Governor of Virginia, Min- 
ister to England, and was Secretary of Stat° under Madison during the 
six years preceding his own presidency. Pie died in New York on the 
4th of July, 1831. He was the third ex-President to die on that day, the 
others being Jefferson and Adams. 

Montcalm, Marquis de, was born near Nimes, France, in 1712. He 
was appointed commander of the French forces in Canada in 1756, and 
was killed in the battle of Quebec in 1759 (p. 117). 

Morris, Robert, the financier of the Revolution, was born in England 
in 1734, but early removed to Philadelphia, where he became a member 
of a successful business firm. As a delegate in the Continental Congress 
in 1776 he voted against the Declaration of Independence, but signed it 
when it was adopted, and was twice reelected to Congress. His financial 
skill was of the greatest value in the Revolution, and he besides lent his 
personal credit to a great amount. He was Superintendent of Finance, 
1781-84, delegate to the Constitutional Convention, and then Senator. 
In his old age he failed through unfortunate investments, and for several 
years was imprisoned for debt. He died in 1806. 

Morse, Samuel Finley Breese, inventor of the electro-magnetic tele- 
graph, was born in IMassachusetts in 1791. He was first known as a his- 
torical and portrait painter. He was for many years the President of the 
National Academy of Design in New York, and was Professor of Fine 
Arts in the University of the city of New York. In 1837 he exhibited a 
telegraph instrument, and in 1844 the line between Washington and Bal- 
timore was built by an appropriation of Congress. Morse established his 
rights in the courts, and received many honors from foreign governments. 
He died in 1872. 

Oglethorpe, James Edward, the founder of Geergia, was born in Lon- 
don in 1698. After some service in the army he was sent to Parliament, 
where he became interested in the condition of English prisons. After 
establishing his colony and defending it for several years, he returned to 
England in 1743, and resumed his service in the army, from which he 
was retired as a general on half pay in 1765. He died in 1785. 

Otis, James, was born on Cape Cod in 1725. He graduated at Harvard 
College at eighteen years of age. He studied law, and rose to the highest 



BIOGRAPHIES 31 

rank in his profession. When the British customs officers appUed for 
writs of assistance that would enable them to search any house at any 
time, Otis's official position as advocate-general made it his duty to 
argue in favor of the writs. But he resigned his lucrative position and 
took the side of liberty. He made a speech five hours long against the 
writs, and this speech is considered by some the starting-point of the 
Revolution. He first furnished the patriots with the cry, " No taxation 
without representation." Worn out by the great struggle over the Stamp 
Act and the debates that followed, his mind gradually gave way, and he 
retired from public affairs. He was killed by a stroke of lightning in 1783. 

Parkman, Francis, historian, was born in Boston, September 16, 1823. 
He graduated at Harvard College in 1844, and studied law for two years. 
While in College he formed a scheme of writing the story of the war 
that ended in the conquest of Canada. This plan he afterwards enlarged 
to include the whole course of the American conflict between France and 
England. His first step, in preparing himself for this work, was to visit 
various tribes of Indians of the Rocky Mountains, where he gained 
familiar acquaintance with the men and scenery of the wilderness. " The 
Conspiracy of Pontiac " (1851) and "Pioneers of France in the New 
World" (1865) established his position as a historical writer of high 
ability, and his fame increased as his later books appeared. He died 
September 8, 1893. 

Perm, William, son of Admiral William Penn, was born in London in 
1644. He was expelled from the University of Oxford for the resistance 
he and others made to certain religious ceremonies. He became a Friend 
or Quaker, and his father was with difficulty reconciled to him. He was 
frequently imprisoned, but he boldly asserted the principles of religious 
liberty; He traveled in Wales, Ireland, Holland, and Germany, and many 
of the kindred sects in those countries afterward came to Pennsylvania. 
He visited Pennsylvania himself in 1682, and again in 1699. He died 
in England in 1718. 

Perry, Oliver Hazard, the hero of Lake Erie, was born in Rhode 
Island in 1785. He served as midshipman in the war with Tripoli (p. 
218). After his victory on Lake Erie (p. 238), Congress promoted him 
to the rank of captain and presented him a silver medal. He afterwards 
took part in the defence of Baltimore. He died in 1819. 

Philip, King, chief of the Wampanoags, was the son of Massasoit, 
the friend of the Pilgrims (p. 57). The Indian war to which he gave 
his name (p. 67) was one of the most memorable in our history. He 
died in 1676. 

Pierce, Franklin, fourteenth President, was born in New Hampshire 
in 1804. He was educated at Bowdoin College, and became a lawyer. 
He was elected member of Congress and then Senator. He served in the 
Mexican War as a brigadier-general under Scott. He died in 1869. 



32 APPENDIX 

Pocahontas, an Indian princess. The story of the manner in which 
she saved the hfe of John Smith is well known (p. 45). In 1613, she 
was married to John Rolfe, one of the English settlers at Jamestown. 
She died in 1617 while on a visit to England. 

Poe, Edgar Allan, author, was born iji Boston, Massachusetts, in 
1809. His parents, who were actors, having died, he was adopted by a 
citizen of Richmond, Virginia. He was sent to school in England. He 
led an irregular life, living at various times in Boston, Baltimore, Rich- 
mond, Philadelphia, and New York, and died in Baltimore in 1849. He 
is best known for " The Raven " and other poems, but wrote also the 
earliest detective stories and some other prose works, and edited several 
literary periodicals at different times. 

Polk, James Knox, eleventh President, was born in North Carolina 
in 1795. He removed to Tennessee in his boyhood, and became a lawyer. 
For fourteen years a member of Congress, he was twice elected Speaker 
of the House of Representatives. He was once Governor of Tennessee. 
He died in 1849, a few months after the end of his presidency. 

Polo, Marco, w^as a Venetian traveler, the account of whose travels 
in the Far East first attracted the attention of Europeans to India, China, 
and Japan (p. 10).. He was born in Venice in 1254, and died there in 

1324- 

Raleigh, Sir Walter, was born in 1552. For years he was a soldier 
on the side of the Huguenots in France. Again he fought on the side of 
Queen Elizabeth in Ireland. He gained the Queen's favor, it is said, by 
spreading his rich cloak over a muddy spot in her path as she was walk- 
ing one day. He bent every energy to fight Spain when she sent the 
Great Armada or fleet of Spain against England. The potato, brought 
from somewhere in America, he had planted on his Irish estate at Youg- 
hal. King James I. kept him in prison in the Tower of London for 
more than twelve years to please the King of Spain, and he there wrote 
a history of the world. In 1618, to please the same king, James I. ordered 
Raleigh to be put to death, after his return from a fruitless expedition 
to Guiana in South America. Raleigh fell by the axe. He said, " It is 
a sharp medicine to cure all of mv diseases." 

Roosevelt, Theodore, twenty-sixth President, was born in New York 
city in 1858. He graduated at Harvard College in 1880. While in the New 
York Legislature he took the lead in civil service reform. He has pub- 
lished many historical and other literary works. In 1897 he was made 
Assistant Secretary of the Navy. The next year he resigned to take part in 
organizing a volunteer regiment to serve in the Spanish-American War. 
The regiment became known as " Roosevelt's Rough Riders." He dis- 
tinguished himself at the battle of San Juan Hill, before Santiago, and 
was made colonel of the regiment. At the close of the war he was elected 
Governor of New York, and his term of office began January i, 1899. 



BIOGRAPHIES 33 

In 1900 he was elected Vice-President of the United States, and on the 
death of President McKinley, September 14, 1901, he succeeded to the 
presidency. In 1904, he was elected President. 

Schuyler, Philip, was born at Albany, New York, in 1733. He served 
in the French and Indian war, and was a delegate to the Continental 
Congress in 1775. He was appointed major-general, and did much to 
secure the defeat of Burgoyne (p. 163). He resigned from the army 
in 1779. Later, he served two terms as United States Senator from 
New York. 

Scott, Winfield, soldier, was born near Petersburg, Virginia, in 1786, 
and was educated at William and Mary College. He entered the army in 
1808, and his brilliant services in the second war with England (p. 240) 
raised him to the rank of major-general. During the Mexican War he 
marched with 10,000 men from Vera Cruz to the City of Mexico, tak- 
ing every strongly fortified position in his way (p. 277). He was the 
Whig candidate for President in 1852, but was defeated. In the Civil 
War his age (seventy-five years) and infirmities obliged him to stand 
aside for younger men. He died in 1866. 

Seward, William Henry, statesman, was born in New York in 1801, 
graduated at Union College, and became a lawyer. He was one of the 
leaders, in turn, of the Antimason, Whig, and Republican parties. As 
a Whig he was twice chosen Governor of his State and twice United 
States Senator. In the Republican National Convention in i860 he was 
at first the leading candidate for the nomination for President. As Secre- 
tary of State under Lincoln and Johnson he was the most prominent fig- 
ure in the Cabinet during the difficult periods of Civil War and Recon- 
struction. He died in 1872. 

Sheridan, Philip Henry, was born in Albany, New York, in 1831. He 
graduated at West Point in 1853. In the Civil War he first gained dis- 
tinction as a cavalry commander in Missouri. Placed in command of a 
division, he showed great qualities at Stone River (Murfreesboro), and 
was promoted to the rank of major-general of volunteers. At Chicka- 
mauga and in the battles about Chattanooga he further distinguished 
himself. Hp was appointed by Grant chief of cavalry of the Army of 
the Potomac, and his campaigns in the Valley of Virginia made him one 
of the most famous generals of the war. He also played an important 
part in the final overthrow of Lee's army. He succeeded Sherman in 
command of the army in 1883, and in 1888 he was appointed general — a 
rank which only Grant and Sherman had attained in the United States 
army before him. He died in 1888. 

Sherman, William Tecumseh, was born in Ohio in 1820, and graduated 
at West Point in 1840. He resigned from the army in 1853, engaged in 
banking in San Francisco, and later practiced law in Kansas. When the 
South seceded he was superintendent of the Military School in Louisiana. 



34 APPENDIX 

He was reappointed to the arm}' in May, 1861. He commanded a 
brigade at Bull Run, and was Grant's trusted subordinate in most of 
his Western campaigns ; but he won his great fame in the command of 
the Mississippi Division after Grant had gone East. At the close of the 
war Sherman was next in rank to Grant, and became general when Grant 
was elected President. He retired in 1884, and died in 1891. 

Smith, John, was born in England in 1579. In his youth he served in 
the wars in the Netherlands, and later he had many adventures in wars 
with the Turks. In Virginia in 1607-9 he was a bold explorer, and a man 
of much practical sense. He was very serviceable to the colonists because 
he managed the Indians well and got corn from them when no one else 
could. He left the colony in 1609, and later made a voyage to New 
England, to which he gave its name. He died in London in 1631. 

Standish, Miles, captain of the Pilgrims at Plymouth, was born in 
Lancashire, England, in 1584. He served as a soldier in Holland, and 
came to Plymouth in the Mayflower in 1620. He was one of the found- 
ers of Duxbury, where he died in 1656. 

Stephens, Alexander Hamilton, Confederate Vice President, was born 
in Georgia in 1812, and died in 1883. He became a lawyer, was a member 
of the Georgia Legislature, and for eight terms (1843-59) was a repre- 
sentative in Congress. He was a Whig up to 1850, when he became a 
Democrat. He opposed secession, but when Georgia seceded he embraced 
the Southern cause. After the war he was five times elected to Congress, 
jind at the time of his death he was Governor of Georgia. 

Stowe, Harriet Beecher, author, was born in Connecticut in 181 1. 
She was a sister of the famous minister Henry Ward Beecher. She re- 
moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1832, and was married in 1836. " Uncle 
Tom's Cabin" was published in 1851-52, was read widely in the United 
States, and was translated into eighteen foreign languages. Mrs. Stowe 
later wrote a number of other novels. She died in 1896. 

Stuyvesant, Peter, the last and greatest of the Dutch governors of New 
York, was born in 1602. Before becoming governor, he had lost a leg in 
battle in the West Indies. After the English seizure of New Netherland 
he went to Holland, but he soon returned, and retired to his farm, called 
the Bowery, in what is now New York city. He died in 1682. 

Taft, "William Howard, was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1857. He 
was graduated at Yale in 1878 and at the Cincinnati College Law School 
in 1880. In 1887 he was appointed judge of the superior court of Cincin- 
nati ; in 1890 solicitor-general of the United States ; in 1892 United States 
circuit judge; in 1900 president of the Philippine Commission, and in 
1901 governor of the Philippines. From 1904 to 1908 he was Secretary 
of War, and one of the most trusted advisers of President Roosevelt. 

Taylor, Zachary, was the twelfth President, and the seventh born in 
Virginia. He was born in 1784, and was carried to Kentucky in infancy. 



BIOGRAPHIES 35 

He got a commission in the army at twenty-four. He gained his first 
distinction by his defense of Fort Harrison in the war against Tecumseh.. 
In a war against the Seminoles of Florida he defeated the savages at 
Lake Okeechobee. His great fame was won in the Mexican War by the 
battles of Monterey, Buena Vista, and others. He died while President, 
July 9, 1850. 

Tyler, John, tenth President, was born in Virginia, 1790, and gradu- 
ated at William and Mary College, at seventeen. He became a lawyer, 
and was a member of the Virginia Legislature, member of Congress, 
governor of Virginia, and United States Sen.ator. He was elected Vice 
President, a Democrat on a Whig ticket, and became President on 
Harrison's death. Early in 1861 he presided over a peace convention, 
which met at Washington in a vain attempt to preserve the Union and 
avert civil war. Later he favored the secession of Virginia, and was 
a member of the Confederate Congress. He died in 1862. 

Van Biu-en, Martin, the eighth President, was born in New York, in 
1782. He became a great politician, and was in succession a member of 
the New York Legislature, United States Senator, and governor of 
New York. Jackson appointed him Secretary of State in 1829, and four 
years later he was inaugfirated Vice President. After his presidency he 
retained much influence in politics for some years, and was once the 
presidential candidate of the Free Soil party. After this he retired 
to his estate at Kinderhook, New York, where he died in 1862. 

Vespucius, Americus, or, in Italian, Amerigo Vespucci, was bom in 
Florence, Italy, in 1451. He removed to Spain before Columbus made 
his first voyage. As an expert navigator he took part in four voyages 
to America, the first in 1497. He went up and down the coast in the 
service, first of Spain and then of Portugal, from Chesapeake Bay to 
the Plata River. In 1503 he built a fort on the coast of Brazil. He was 
a friend of Christopher Columbus. He was pilot-major of S'pain in 
1508, and died in 1512. 

Washington, George, was born in Virginia, February 22, 1732. His 
father was a planter with a large landed property; his mother was a 
woman of great force of character, but like many women of her time, 
she had little education. Washington got such education as the country 
schools afforded. He learned surveying and bookkeeping. His e;<;er- 
cise books were models of exactness. Washington grew up a lad of 
great strength. He took the lead in sports and was one of the best 
horsemen of the day. While yet a mere boy he was engaged in sur- 
veying the wild lands of Lord Fairfax, an English nobleman who 
owned a great tract of Virginia territory. He thus came to know the 
frontier habits of the Indian. He was a major of militia at nineteen, 
and was only twenty-one when Governor Dinwiddle sent him on a 
mission to the French posts on the Ohio. By his prudent conduct in, 



36 APPENDIX 

expeditions against Fort Duquesne (pp. iii, iis), he won the confidence 
of the American people. He was a member of the Continental Congress, 
and Patrick Henry said of him that for " solid information and sound 
judgment," he was "unquestionably the greatest man" on the floor of 
Congress. The rest of his life belongs to the history of his country. 
He died December 14, 1799, at Mount Vernon. 

Wayne, Anthony, was born in Pennsylvania in 1745. He entered the 
army as a colonel in 1776, and distinguished himself in many actions, 
notably in the storming of Stony Point. It was his careful organization 
and bold execution of enterprises during the Revolution that led Wash- 
ington to select him to retrieve St. Clair'^s defeat by the Indians of the 
Northwest Territory (p. 206). He died in 1796, near Lake Erie. 

Webster, Daniel, orator and statesman, was born in New Hamp- 
shire in 1782. He graduated at Dartmouth College in 1801, and in 1805 
was admitted to the bar. He won great fame as an orator, and repre- 
sented Massachusetts in the Senate many years. He took part in every 
great debate of his time and in celebrated cases before the courts. His 
cardinal principle was to uphold the Constitution. He was appointed 
Secretary of State by President William Henry Harrison and again by 
President Fillmore. He died in 1852. 

Whitney, Eli, inventor, was born in Massachusetts in 1765. He 
worked as a nail maker until he graduated from Yale College in 1792. 
He went to Georgia and invented the cotton gin (p. 250). The building 
in which it was kept was broken into and the machine was set gomg on 
every plantation. Whitney, thus robbed of the profits of his invention, 
turned his attention to the manufacture of firearms, in which he made a 
fortune. He died in 1825. 

Williams, Roger, founder of Rhode Island, was born in England in 
1607. He was an earnest preacher, spoke several languages, and wrote 
some works on theological subjects. His title to fame rests on his intro- 
duction of the principle of the entire separation of church and State, in 
the colony he founded. He died at Providence, Rhode Island, in 1683. 

Wilson, Woodrow, was born in Virginia in 1856. He was educated 
at Princeton and at the University of Virginia, practiced law for two 
years, and then became a college professor. He was president of Prince- 
ton University from 1902 to 1910, when he was elected governor of New 
Jersey. He is the author of several books on history and government. 

Winthrop, John, born in 1588 in England, was the principal founder 
of Massachusetts (pp. 59, 60), and was governor of the colony almost 
continually until his death in 1649. 

Wolfe, James, soldier, was born in England in 1726, and entered the 
army at an early age. He saw much fighting in Europe and Scotland 
before he was sent to America. He served as a brigadier-general with 
Amherst in the siege and capture of Louisburg in 1758, and next year 
was given charge of the expedition against Quebec, which ended in his 
success and in his death on the battle-field. 



INDEX 



Abercromby, Gen. James, 115 

Acadia, Expedition against, in ; ex- 
plored by De Monts, 36 ; settled, 35 ; 
taken by Phips, loi 

Acadians, Expulsion of, ill, 112 

Adams, John, biography, App. , 15 ; 
in Revolutionary period, 156, 186, 
187 ; President, 211-215 ; Vice Presi- 
dent, 198 

Adams, John Quincy, biography, App., 
15 ; President, 253-255 

Adams, Samuel, 152, 153 ; biography, 
App. 15 

Africa, 11 

Aguinaldo, 397 

Aix-la-Chapelle, Treaty of, 104 

Alabama, 249, 304 

Alabama, The, 346, 363 

Alaska, 359 

Albany, 69, 70 

Albany Convention, no 

Albemarle Colony, 77 

Albemarle, Duke of, 77 

Alert, The, 234 

Algiers, Treaty with, 218 ; war with, 
245 

Algonquins, 17 

Alien law, 213 

Allen, Ethan, 153 

Amendments to Constitution, twelfth, 
217; fourteenth, 357; fifteenth, 361 ; 
sixteenth, 407 ; seventeenth, 408 

America, 24 

American System, The, 253 

Amherst, Gen. Jeffrey, 114, 115 

Amsterdam, Fort, 70 

Anaesthetics, 293 

Anarchists, 375 

Anderson, Maj. Robert, 310, 311 

Andre, Maj. John, 171 

Andros, Sir Edmund, 90-92 

Annapolis Convention, 192 

Annapolis Royal, 104 

Anne, Queen, 81, 85, 102 

Antietam, 330, 331 

Antifederalists, 195 

Antimasons, 264, 265 



Appomattox, 351 

Aquidneck, 65 

Argall, Capt., 49, 50 

Argus, The, 236 

Arizona. 278, 407, 40S 

Ark, The, 74 

Arkansas, 266 

Arms of the Colonists, 119 

Arnold, Benedict, 153, 157, 166, 170, 

171, 185, 186 
Arthur, Chester A., 372 ; biography, 

App., 16 
Articles of Confederation, i8g 
Ashburton, Lord, 270 
Ashburton Treaty, 270 
Ashley River, 77 
Asia, 10, 12 
Assembly, First, 50 
Astor, John Jacob, 271, 272 
Astoria, 271 
Astrolabe, 9 
Atlanta, 347, 348 
Audubon, John James, 402; biography, 

App., 16 
Avalon, 73 
Averysboro, 350 
Bacon, Nathaniel, 93, 94; biography, 

App., 16 
Bahamas, 14 

Bainbridge, Captain, 219, 235 
Balboa, Vasco Nunez de, 26 ; biog- 
raphy, App., 16 
Balls Bluff, 316 
Baltimore, Baron, 73 
Baltimore, Second Lord, 74 
Baltimore, Siege of, 242 
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, 259 
Bancroft, George, 402 ; biography, App., 

16 
Bank, National, 202, 262 
Banks, Wildcat, 266 
Banks, Gen. Nathaniel P., 326 
Barclay, Captain 238, 239 
Barbary Pirates, 218 
Bear Flag Republic, 276 
Beauregard, Gen. P. G. T. , at Bull Run, 

313, 314; at Shiloh, 321 



37 



38 



INDEX 



Bell, Alexander Graham, 399 

Bell, John, 302 

Bemis Heights, 166 

Bennington, 164 

Bentonville, 350 

Berkeley, Lord, 80, 8r 

Berkeley, Sir William, 92-94 

Bermudas, 45 

Big Horn River, 365 

Blackbeard, 132, 133 » 

Blackhawk War, 264 

Black Sea, 11 

Bladensburg, 242 

Blaine, James G., 374 

Blue Lodges, 295 

Bonaparte, Napoleon, 213, 2ig, 221, 
224, 231, 241 

Bon Homme Richard, The, 169, 170 

Bond Servants, 130 

Bonnet, Stede, 133 

Boone, Daniel, 173; biography, App. , 16 

Boston, Fire in, 364 ; founded, 60 

Boston Massacre, 147 

Boston Port Bill, 149 

Boston Tea Party, 149 

Boundary, Northeast, 270 

Boxers, 405 

Braddock, Gen. Edward, iio, ill 

Bradford, William, 57 ; biography, 
App., 17 

Bradstreet, Col. John, 114 

Bragg, Gen Braxton, at Chattanooga, 
341; at Murfreesboro, 333, 334; Ken- 
tucky invaded by, 330, 331 

Brazil, 24 

Breckinridge, John C, 297, 302 

Brewster, Elder, 57 

Brock, Gen. Isaac, 233 

Brook, Lord, 63 

Brooklyn, 70 

Brooklyn Heights, 159 

Brooks, Preston S, 296 

Brown, Gen. Jacob, 240 

Brown, John, 300 

Bryan, William J., 384, 403 

Bryant, William CuUen, 402 ; biography, 
App., 17 

Buchanan, James, 297 ; biography, 
App., 17 

Buckner, Gen. Simon B., 318 

Buell, Gen. Don Carlos, 321, 322, 330 

Buena Vista, 276 

Bull Run, 313, 314, 329, 330 
Bunker Hill, 154, 155, 21^2 
Burgesses, House of, 50, [;3 
Burnside, Gen. Ambrose E., 332, 335 
Burgoyne, Gen. John, 154, 163, 165 



Burr, Aaron, 215, 226 

Butler, Gen. Benjamin F., 331, 332 

Cabal, Conway, 168 

Cabinet Officers, 200 

Cable. Atlantic, 399 1 

Cabot, John, 25 ; biography, App., 17 

Cabot, Sebastian, 25 ; see biography of 

John Cabot, App., 17 
Calhoun, John C, 254, 263, 281, 282; 

biography, App., 18 
California, 278, 2S4 

Calvert, Cecil, 74; biography, App., 18 
Calvert, George, 73 
Calvert, Leonard, 74 
Camden, 181 
Campbell, William, 182 
Canada : British possession of, 117; in 

in War of 1812, 238 ; settlement of, 

36, 95 

Canary Islands, 13, 43 

Canby, General, 343, 365 

Cape Ann, 59 

Cape Cod, 41 

Cape Fear, 79 

Cape Fear River, 77 

Cape of Good Hope, 11, 27, 38 

Cape San Roque, 24 

Capital, Confederate, 312 

Capital, National, 200, 201 

Capitol, in 1800, 217 ; fired by British, 
242 

Carnegie, Andrew, biography, App., 18 

Carolina, 76, 79, 86, 179 

Caroline, Fort, 34, 35 

Carteret, Sir George, 77, 80 

Carteret Colony, 77 

Cartier, Jacques, 33 

Carver, Governor, 57 

Cass, Lewis, 279 

Cedar Creek, 345 

Cemetery, Ridge, 337, 338 

Census, 1790, 203 ; 1800, 214 ; 1810, 
249; 1820, 254; 1830, 266; 1840, 
273; 1850, 284; i860, 306; 1870, 
367; 1880, 373; X890, 379; 1900,397; 
1910, 407 

Cerro Gordo, 277 

Cervera, Admiral, 388, 390, 392 

Champlain, Samuel de, 36, 95, 98; bi- 
ography, App., 18 

Champlain, Lake, 36, 62 

Chancellorsville, 335 

Charles I., 53, 73, 90, 92 

Charles II., 60, 76, 81, 90, 92 

Charles Town attacked by British, 103, 
179 ; Cornwallis at, 182 ; indigo 



INDEX 



39 



raised in, 78 ; Oglethorpe at, 88 ; 
settled, 77 

Charleston, 77; see Charles Town 

Charlestown, 60 

Charter, Great, 50 

Charter Oak, 91 

Chattanooga, 340, 341 

Chauncey, Isaac, 238 

Cherokee War, 174 , 

Cherry Valley, 177 

Cherub, The, 236 

Chesapeake, The, 225, 235 

Chesapeake Bay, 24, 44 

Chicago, Anarchists in, 3715; exposition 
in, 381 ; lire in, 364 ; railroad strike 
in, 369 

Chickasaw Indians, 264 

Chickahominy River, 44 

Chickamauga, 340, 341 

Chile, 38 

China, Treaty with, 376 ; disturbances 
in, 404 

Chinese Immigration, 376 

Chippewa River, 240 

Churubusco, 277 

Choctaw Indians, 264 

Cibola, 29, 30 

Civil Service Reform, 372, 374 

Civil War, 308-354 

Cincinnati, 107, 206 

Claiborne, William, 75 

Clans, 21, 22 

Clarendon, Earl of, 77 

Clarendon Colony, 77 

Clark, George Rogers, 1 75-1 77 ; biog- 
raphy, App., 19 

Clark, William, 221 

Clay, Henry, American system advo- 
cated by, 253 ; biography, App., 19 ; 
candidate for Presidency, 254, 274 ; 
compromise of 1850, 282, 283 ; com- 
promise tariff, 264; Missouri com- 
promise supported by, 251 

Clermont, The, 229 

Cleveland, Grover. biography, App., 
19; President, 374-377, 380-382 

Clinton, De Witt, 258, 259; biography, 
App., 19 

Clinton, George, 223, 230 

Clinton, Sir Henry, 154, 168, T71, 179, 
186 

Clothing, Colonial, 138 

Coal strikes, 405 

Colleges Established, 126, 127 

Coligny, 34 

Colonies in Acadia, 35 ; in Canada, 3C; 
Huguenot, 34; in Georgia, 85-89; 



in New England, 54-68 ; in New 
Jersey, 80, 81 ; in New York, 69-73 ; 
in Pennsylvania, 81-84 ; in the Caro- 
linas, 76-So ; in Virginia, 42—54 ; 
Raleigh's, 39, 40 

Colorado, 278, 360, 366 

Columbia, S. C, 350 

Columbia, District of, 201, 

Columbia, The, 221 

Columbia River, 221, 271 

Columbian Exposition, 381, 

Columbus, Christopher, 9, 12, 13, 15; 
biography, App., ig 

Compass, Mariners', g 

Compromise, Missouri, 250 ; of 1850, 
279-284 ; period of, 247-307 ; tariff, 
264 

Concord Fight, 153 

Confederation, Articles of, iSg-igr 

Confederate States, 305 

Congress, First Continental, 150; Mass. 
Provincial, 152 ; second Continental, 
156 ; stamp act, 146 

Congress, The, 319, 320 

Connecticut, 62-64 

Constitution Adopted, 195; framed, 193, 
twelfth amendment, 217; fourteenth 
amendment, 357,358; fifteenth amend- 
ment, 361; provisions of 196; text of , 
App., I 

Constitution (frigate), 234 

Constitutional Convention, 193 

Constitutional Union Party, 302 

Constitutions, State, 189 

Continental Congress, 150, 156 

Contrabands, Negroes as, 331, 332 

Contreras, 277 

Conway Cabal, 168 

Cooking, Colonial, 124, 125 

Cooper, James Fenimore, 402 

Cooper, Peter, 259; biography, App., 20 

Corinth, 334 

Cornwallis, Lord, 161, 163, 181, 182, 
184, 185, 186 

Coronado, 30, 31 

Cortez, Hernando, 2g 

Cotton, 316, 401 

Cotton, factories, 2gl 

Cotton gin, 250 

Cotton machinery, 290, 2gl 

Council for New England 57 

Cowpens, 183 

Crawford, William H., 254 

Credit Mobilier, 365 

Creek War, 240, 241, 264 

Crittenden, John J., 306 

Cromwell, 76 



40 



INDEX 



Crogan, Maj. George, 238 

Cross Keys, 326 

Crown Point, in, 112, 154 

Cuba Discovered, 14; expeditions to, 

286; republic of, 396 
Cumberland, 319, 320 
Cumberland Road, 255, 258 
Custer, Gen. George A., 365, 366 
Customs and Manners in Colonial 

Times, 121-134 
Cuttyhunk, 41 

Dakota Nation, 17 

Dale, Sir Thomas, 48 

Dallas, 347 

Dallas, George M., 274 

Dana, R. H., 402 

Davis, Jefferson, 305, 347 ; biography, 
App., 20 

Debt, New National, 268; paying na- 
tional, 356 

Decatur, Stephen, 219, 234, 245 

Declaration of Independence, 157, 158 

Deerfield, Mass., 103 

De Gourgues, 35 

De la Warr, Lord, 47, 48 

Delaware, 82, 195 

Delaware Bay, 69 

Delaware Indians, 83 

De Monts, 35, 36 

Democrats, 203, 254 

Deposits, Removal of, 265 

De Soto, 31, 32; biography, App., 20 

Detroit, 205, 240 

Dewey, George, 389, 393, 395 ; biog- 
raphy, App., 20 

Dey of Algiers, 245 

Dieskow, Baron, 112, 1 13 

Dingley Tariff, 386 

Dinwiddle, Gen. Robert, 108 

Directory, French, 211, 212 

Discovery, The, 43 

District of Columbia, 201 

Donelson, Fort, 317, 318 

Dorchester Company, 5q 

Dorchester Heights, 156 

Dorr, Thomas A., 270 

Dorr Rebellion, 270 

Dove, The, 74 

Dover, 62 

Douglas, Stephen A., 295, 302 

Draft Riots, 339, 340 

Drake, Sir Francis, 37, 38, 40 ; biog- 
raphy, App., 20 

Drake, J. R., 402 

Dred Scott Case, 298 

Dress, Colonial, 126 



Duquesne, Governor, 107 
Duquesne, Fort, 108, 109, in, 115 
Durham, N. H., 102 
Dutch East India Company, 6g 
Dutch West India Company, 70, 71 

Eads, Capt. J. B., 370, 371 

Early, Gen. Jubal A., 344, 345 

Early's Raid, 344 

Edison, T. A., 399; biography, App,, 21 

Education, Colonial, 126 

El Caney, 391 

Electric Cars, 400 

Electoral Commission, 368 

Elizabeth, Queen, 38, 39 

Elizabethtown, 80 

Elkswatawa, 231 

Emancipation Proclamation, 331, 332 

Embargo, 224, 230, 231, 301 

Emerson, Ralph Waldo, 402; biography, 

App., 21 
Emigrant Aid Societies, 295 
Endicott, John, 59 
England, 76, 2og 
English and French, 99 
Erie Canal, 258 
Erie, Fort, 240 
Essex, The, 236 
Europe, 12 
Eutaw Springs, 184 
Everett, Edward, 302 
Excise Taxes, 202 

Fair Oaks, 326 

Fallen Timber, Battle of the, 207 

Falls of St. Anthony, 98 

Farming in the Colonies, 121 

Farragut, David Glasgow, 324, 348 ; 

biography, App., 21 
Federal Hall, 198 

Federalists, 195, 201, 213, 216, 217, 254 
Ferdinand, King, 13, 15 
Ferguson, Col. Patrick, 181 
Field, Cyrus W., 399; biography, App., 

21 
Fifteenth Amendment, 361 
Fillibusters, 2S6, 288 
Fillmore, Millard, 279 ; biography, 

App., 21 
Fisher, Fort, 350 
Fishers Hill, 345 
Fires, Great, 364 
Fitch, John, 228 
Five Forks, 350 
Flatboats, 227, 228 
Flintlock Guns, 119, 120 
Florida, Acquired by U. S., 247, 248; 



INDEX 



41 



ceded to Great Britain, 117; discov- 
ered, 24, 28; expedition against, 104; 
Spaniards in, 79; visited by De Soto, 
31; State, 273, 304 

Floyd, General, 318 

Foote, Andrew H., 317, 31S, 322 

Forbes, Gen. John, 115 

Forrest, Gen. N. B., 318 

Fort Amsterdam, 70 

Fort Caroline, 34, 35 

Fort Donelson, 317, 31S 

Fort Duquesne, loS, 109, iii, 115 

Fort Erie, 240 

Fort Fisher, 350 

Fort Frontenac, 1 14 

Fort George, 238 

Fort Henry, 317 

Fort Johnson, 144 

Fort Le Boeuf, 107, 108 

Fort Lee, 159 

Fort Loyal, loi 

Fort Mc Henry, 242 

Fort Mackinac, 233 

Fort Meigs, 238 

F"ort Mimms, 24T 

Fort Moultrie, 17S, 179, 310 

Fort Necessity, 109 

Fort Orange, 70 

Fort Pitt, 115, 118 

Fort Schuyler, 164 

Fort Stephenson, 238 

Fort Sumter, 310 

Fort Ticonderoga, 153 

Fort Washington, 159 

Fort William Henry, 113, 114 

Fourteenth Amendment, 357, 358 

Fox, George, 81 

Foxes (Indians), 264 

France, 32-36, 167, 211, 224 

Franklin, Benjamin, at Constitutional 
Convention, 193; biography, App., 21 ; 
in France, 167; plan of Union, no; 
treaty of peace, 186 

Fredericksburg, 332 

Free Soil Party, 279 

Fremont, John C, 273, 349; biography, 
App., 22 

French Ask Aid. 207 

French and Indian Wars, 97-118 

Frobisher, Sir Martin, 27, 38 

Frolic, The. 234 

Frontenac, Count, 100 

Frontenac, Fort, 114 

Fry, Colonel, 109 

Fugitive Slave Law, 283 

Fulton, Robert, 228, 229 ; biography, 
App., 22 



Funston, General, 397 

Fur Trade, 272 

Furniture, Colonial, 124, 125 

Gadsden Purchase, 287, 288 

Gage, Gen. Thomas, 152 

Gains, Edmund P., 240 

Garfield, James A., 371, 372; biogra- 
phy, App., 22 

Gama, Vasco da, 25 

Gaspee, The, 148 

Gates, Gen. Horatio, 164, 181, 182. 

Gates, Sir Thomas, 45 

Genet, Edmund C, 207 

Genoa, 10, ir 

George II., 88 

George III., 142 

George, Lake, 62 

George, Fort, 238 

Georgia, 85-90 ; acquired by England, 
103 ; secedes, 304 ; readmitted, 361. 

German Immigration, 85 

Germantown, 85, 167 

Gerry, Elbridge, 212 

Gettysburg, 336-338 

Gilbert, Sir Humphrey, 38 

Gist, Christopher, 107 

Gold in California, 278 ; in Colorado, 
etc., 360 

Golden Hind, The, 38 

Good Feeling, Era of, 247-257 

Goodspeed, The, 43 

Goodyear, Charles, 292 ; biography, 
App., 22 

Gorges, Sir Ferdinando, 61 

Gosnold, Bartholomew, 41 

Grant, Ulysses S., at Forts Henry and 
Donelson, 317, 318.; at Chattanooga, 
341 ; at Vicksburg-, 338 ; biography, 
App., 23 ; in battle of Wilderness, 
343 ; in command, 342 ; President, 
361-367 

Gray, Asa, 402 ; biography, App., 63 

Gray, Robert, 221, 271; biography, 
App., 23 

Great Meadows, log 

Greeley, Horace, 365 

Green, Roger, 77 

Greene, General, 182-184; biography, 
App., 23 

Green Bay, 96 

Green Mountain Boys, 154, 165 

Greenbacks, 356 

Greenland, 9 

Grinding, 135, 136 

Groton, Mass., 102 

Guerriere, The, 234 



42 



INDEX 



Guilford Court House ^83, 184 
Gulf of California, 29 
Gulf of St. Lawrence, 35 

Haiti, 14 

Hale, Nathan, i6r 

Half Moon, The, 69, 70 

Halleck, Gen, H. W., 322, 329 

Halleck, Pitz-Greene, 402 

Hamburg, 260 

Hamilton, Alexander, 193, 195, 201, 
202, 226 ; biography, App., 23 

Hamlin, Hannibal, 302 

Hancock, John, 152, 153, 158 ; biogra- 
phy, App., 24 

Hargreaves, James, 290 

Harmar, General, 206 

Harrison, Benjamin, 37S-380 ; biogra- 
phy, App., 24 

Harrison, William Henry, 232, 237, 
238, 268, 269; biography, App., 24 

Hartford, 64 

Harvard College established, 126 

Harvester, 291 

Harvey, Sir John, 92 

Hatteras Inlet, 316 

Havana ceded to Spain, 117 

Hawaiian Islands, 380, 393 

Hawkins, John, 37, 38 

Hawthorne, Nathaniel, 402 

Hay, John, 404, 405 

Hayes, Rutherford B., 367-371 
biography, App., 24 

Hennepin, Father, 98 

Henrietta Maria, Queen, 74 

Henry, Patrick, 144, 146, 175, 187 ; 
biography, App., 25 

Henry IV., 35 

Henry VII., 25 

Henry, Fort, 317 

Herkimer, Gen. Nicholas, 164 

Hessians, 161, 162 

Hispaniola, 14, 15, 28 

Hobkirk's Hill, 184 

Hobson, Richmond P., 390, 395 

Hoe, Richard M., 293 

Holmes, Oliver Wendell, 402 

Holy Alliance, 248 

Honduras, 15 

Hood, John B., 347, 348, 350 

Hooker, Gen. Joseph, 335-337. 343 

Hooker, Thomas, 64 ; biography, 
App.. 25 

Hopkins, Stephen, 148 

Hornet, The, 235 

Horse Shoe Bend, Victory at, 241 

House Building, 135 



Houses, Colonial, 123 

Houston, Gen. Samuel, 270 

Howe, Elias, 293; biography, App., 25 

Howe, Lord, 115, 154, 159, 161, 166, 

168 
Hudson, Henry, 69; biography, App., 2 5 
Hudson River, 69 
Hudson Strait, 38 

Huguenot Colonies, 34; immigration, 86 
Hull, Capt. Isaac, 234 
Hull, Gen. William, 233 
Hussey, Obed, 292 
Hutchinson, Mrs. Anne, 65 

Idaho, 360, 379 

Illinois, 249 

Immigration, 85-87 

Impeachment of Johnson, 358 

Impressment of Seamen, 208 

Imprisonment for Debt, 130 

Indentured Servants, 130 

Independence, Declaration of, 157, 158 

Independence Hall, 156 

India, 10-12, 26 

Indiana, 226, 249 

Indian Massacre of 1622, 52 

Indian Ocean, 11 

Indian Territory, 264 

Indian Wars, Causes of, 120 

Indians, 16-24, 5^ ; Blackhawk War, 264 ; 
Cherokee War, 174 ; in Carolinas, 78 ; 
in French and Indian Wars, 99-118 ; 
in King Philip's W^ar, 67, 68 ; in Mo- 
doc War, 365 ; in Northwest, 206, 
231 ; in Pequot W^ar, 66 ; in Pontiac's 
War, 117, 118; in Sioux War, 365; 
Relations with the French, 95-99 

Indigo, 78, 79 

Industral Exhibitions, 289, 366, 381 

Industries, Colonial, 121-123, 135-140 

Ingraham, Captain, 288 

Iowa, 278 

Interstate Commerce Law, 376 

Intolerable Acts, 149 

Intrepid, The, 219 

Irish Immigration, 86 

Iron, 137, 401 

Iroquois Indians, 17, 21, 22, 78, 79, 98, 
100 

Irving, Washington, 402 ; biography, 
App., 25 

Isabella, Queen, 13, 15 

Island Number 10, 322 

Isthmian Canal, 404 

Jack, Captain, 365 

Jackson, Gen. Andrew, at New Orleans, 



INDEX 



43 



243 ; at Pensacola, 248 ; biography, 
App., 25 ; Governor of Florida, 248 ; 
in Creek War, 241 ; President, 254- 
266 

Jackson, Charles T., 294 

Jackson, Gen. T. J., at Bull Run, 314 ; 
at Chancellorsville, 336 ; at Harpers 
Ferry, 331 ; biography, App., 20 ; in 
Valley Campaign, 326 

Jamaica, 15 

James I., 42, 52, 73 

James II., 90-92, 100 

James River, 43, 47 

Jamestown, 43-47, 52, 85, 131 

Japan, 10, 2S7 

Jasper, Sergeant William, 178, 179 

Jay, John, 186, 195, 209 

Jefferson, Thomas, advises decimal sys- 
tem of money, 202 ; biography, App., 
26 ; Declaration of Independence 
written by, 158 ; President, 215-227 ; 
Secretary of State, 203 ; Vice Presi- 
dent, 211 

Johnson, Andrew, 357, 358, 361 ; biog- 
raphy, App. , 26 

Johnson, Col. Richard M., 240 

Johnson, Fort, 144 

Johnson, Herschel V., 302 

Johnson, Sir William, 1 12; biography, 26 

Johnston, Gen. Albert Sidney, 321, 322 

Johnston, Gen. Joseph E., at Averys- 
boro, 350; at Bentonville, 350; at Bull 
Run, 314 ; at Dalton, 342 ; at Fair 
Oaks, 326, 327 ; at the West,' 347 ; 
biography, App., 27 

Joliet, 96 

Jones, John Paul, 169; biography, App., 
27 

Kalb, Baron de, 167 

Kansas, 294-296, 300, 306 

Kansas-Nebraska bill, 294, 297, 301 

Kansas Struggle, 295 

Kaskaskia, 176, 177 

Kearny, General, 276 

Kearsage, The, 346 ■> 

Keel boats, 228 

Kenesaw Mountain, 347 

Kent Island, 75 

Kenton, Simon, 173 

Kentucky, 174, 210, 317 

Kentucky Resolutions of 1798, 213, 301 

Key, Francis S., 242 

Kidd, Captain, 132 

Kirtg George's War, 104 

King Philip's War, 67, 68 

King William's War, 99 



Kings Mountain, 181, 182 
Know-Nothing Party, 296 
Kosciusko, Count. 168 
Koszta, Martin, 288 
Ku Klux Klan, 363 

Laconia, 62 

Ladrones, 393 

Lafayette, Marquis de, 167, 168, 186, 
251 ; biography, App., 27 

Lancaster, Congress retreats to, 167 

Lane, Joseph, 302 

Lane, Ralph, 39 

Lake Michigan, 96 

La Salle, Robert Cavelierde, 96,98, 105; 
biography, App., 27 

Las Guasimas, 391 

Laudonniere, Rene de, 34 

Lawrence, Captain James, 235,236 

Lawrence, The, 239 

Lead Plates Buried, 107 

Le Boeuf Fort, 107, 108 

Lee, Charles, 161, 168, 169 

Lee, Light-Horse Harry, 185, 203 

Lee, Richard Henry, 158 

Lee, Robert E., at Appomattox, 351; at 
Bull Run, 329, 330 ; at Chancellors- 
ville, 335, 336 ; at Cold Harbor, 344; 
at Fair Oaks, 327 ; at Fredericks- 
burg, 332; at Gettysburg, 336-338; at 
Harpers Ferry, 300; biography, App., 
27 ; crosses the Potomac, 330, 331 ; de- 
fends Richmond, 343, 344, 350; drives 
McClellan from Richmond, 328 ; 
evacuates Richmond, 351 ; in charge 
of Confederate armies, 326 ; on the 
Rappahannock, 342 ; retires to Vir- 
ginia, 332 

Lee. Fort. 159 

Leif, 9; App., 28 

Leisler, Jacob, 92 

Leopard, The, 225 

Lewis, Meriwether, 221 

Lewis and Clark, 221, 222, 271, 272 

Lexington, 153 

Lincoln, Abraham, assassinated, 352 ; 
biography, App., 28; Emancipation 
Proclamation, 331 ; President, 302- 
362 

Lincoln, Benjamin, 192 

Little Belt, The, 231 

Little Harbor, 62 

Locke, John, 78 

Long Island, Battle of, 159, 160 

London Company, 42 

Longfellow, H. W. , 402; biography, 
App., 28 



44 



INDEX 



Longstreet, James, 34I 

Lookout Mountain, 34I 

Lopez Expedition, 286 

Loudoun, Earl of, 113 

Louis XIV., 98, 100 

Louisburg, 104, 113 

Louisiana Region claimed by France, 

98, 105 ; ceded to United States, 219; 

ceded to Spain, 117 
Louisiana State, 249; secedes, 304 
Louisville, 98 
Lowell, Francis C, 291 
Lowell, James Russell, 402 
Loyal, Fort, loi 
Lucas, Eliza, Miss, 78 
Lundys Lane, 240 
LyoHj Gen. Nathaniel, 319 

McClellan, Gen. George B., 315 

325, 326, 328, 329, 332, 349 
McCormick, Cyrus H., 292; App., 28 
McCormick, Robert, 292 
Macdonough, Thomas, 242; App., 28 
McDowell, Gen. Irvin, 314, 325-327, 

329 
Macedonian, The, 234 
McHenry, Fort, 242 
Mackinac, Fort, 205, 233 
McKinley, WilHam, 379, 384, 386, 387, 

402, 403 ; biography, App., 29 
McKinley Tariff, 379 
Madison, James, 187, 193, 195, 230, 

233, 242 ; biography, App., 29 
Madoc, 9 
Magellan, Ferdinand, 26 ; biography, 

App., 29 
Magellan. Strait of, 38 
Magruder, Gen. John B., 325 
Maine, 61, 62, 87, 254 
Maine, The, 387 
Malay Peninsula, 15 
Malvern Hill, 328 
Manassas, 313, 314, 329, 330 
Manassas, The, 324 
Manhattan Island, 70 
Manila Bay, 389 
Manners and Customs in Colonial 

Times, 121-139 
Marcos, 29, 30 
Marietta, 206 
Marion, Gen. Francis, 185 
Marquette, Father Jacques, 96 
Marshall, John, 212, 214 ; biography, 

App., 29 
Mary, Queen, 74 
Mary, William III. and, 92 
Maryes Heights, 333 



Maryland, 69-76, 87 

Mason, Captain John, 66 

Mason, John, 61 

Mason and Dixon's Line, 84 

Mason and Slidell, 317 

Massachusetts, first printing press in, 
139; in Revolution, 152-155; joins 
Confederation, 67 ; religious persecu- 
tion in, 60, 130; settled, 59 

Massachusetts Bay Company, 59 

Massachusetts Bill, 150 

Massacre, Boston, 147 

Massasoit, 57, 64, 67 

Matamoras, 276 

Matchlock guns, 119, 120 

Maximillian, 358, 359 

Mayflower, The, 55 

Maynard, Lieutenant, 132 

Meade, Gen. George G., 337 

Mecklenburg Declaration, 157 

Mediterranean Sea, 11 

Meigs, Fort, 238 

Memphis, 322, 323 

Menendez, 34, 35 

Merrimac, The, 319, 320, 321 

Merritt, Gen. Wesley, 393 

Mexican War, 274-279 

Mexico, 17, 24, 277 

Miami Indians, 206 

Michigan, 266 

Miles, Gen. Nelson A., 392 

Mill Springs, 317 

Mimms, Fort, 241 

.Minnesota, 306 

Mint, 202 

Minuit, Peter, 70, 72 ; biography, App. , 30 

Minutemen, 153 

Missionary Ridge, 341 

Mississippi, 249, 304 

Mississippi Jetties, 370 

Missouri, 254 

Missouri Compromise, 250, 253, 282, 298 

Mobile Bay, 348 

Modoc Indians, 365 

Mohawk Indians, 98 

Monitor, The, 319, 320 

Monmouth, 168 

Monroe, James, 221 ; biography, App., 
30 
i Monroe Doctrine, 248 

Montana, 360, 379 

Montcalm, Marquis de, 1 1 3 , 1 1 7 ; App. , 30 

Monterey, 276, 277 

Montgomery, Gen. Richard, 157 
Montreal, 36, 100, loi 

Moody, Captain, 134 

Moore, Colonel, 102 



INDEX 



45 



Morgan, Gen. Daniel, 157, 166, 183 

Morgan, Gen. John, 340 

Morgan, William, 265 

Morgan's Raid, 340 

Mormons, 299 

Morocco, 218 

Morris, Robert, 1S6 ; biography, App., 

30 
Morristown, 163 
Morse, Samuel F. B., 292, 293, 399; 

biography, App., 30 
Morton, Dr. W. T. G., 294 
Motley, John Lothrop, 402 
Moultrie, Fort, 178, 179, 310 
Moultrie, Gen. William, 179 
Murfreesboro, 333, 334 
Muscogees, 17 
Muskokees, 17, 19 
Mystic, Conn., 66 

Napoleon I., 213, 219, 221, 224, 231,241 

Napoleon III., 358 

Narragansett Bay, 64 

Narragansett Indians, 67 

Narvaez, 28 

National Republicans, 254 

Naumkeag, 59 

Navesink, 80 

Navigation Act, 141 

Nebraska, 360 

Necessity, Fort, 109 

Nevada, 278, 353, 360 

New Albion, 38 

New Amsterdam, 73, 77, 86, 87 

New Castle, Del., 82 

New England, 36, 54-68, 90 

Newfoundland, 73 

New Hampshire, 61, 195 

New Haven, 65 

New Jersey, 80, Si, 87, 195 

New Mexico, 278, 407, 408 

New Netherland, 70, 72, 73 

New Orleans, 105, 243, 324 

New Sweden, 71 

New York, 69-76, 86 

New York city, 70 

Nez Perce War, 369 

Niagara, ill, 112, 205 

Niagara, The, 239 

Nicaragua, 15 

Nifia, The, 13 

Nipissing, Lake, 36 

Non-importation Act, 223, 224 

Non-intercourse Act, 230, 231, 252 

Norsemen, g 

North Carolina, 76, 77, 87 

North Dakota, 379 



Northwest Territory, 192 

Nova Scotia, 35 
Nullification, 263 

Oglethorp, James, 87-89, 104 ; biogra- 
phy, App., 30 

Ohio, 206, 226 

Ohio Company, First, 107 

Oklahoma, 406 

Old South Meeting House, 149 

Orange, Fort, 70 

Ordinance of 1787, 192 

Oregon, 306; boundary of , 271; coun 
try, 221 

Orinoco River, 15 

Ostend Manifesto, 286 

Osceola, 264 

Oswego, 113 

Otis, Gen. Elwell S., 397 

Otis, James, 142, 1S7 ; biography, App., 
30 

Ottawa River, 36 

Pacific Ocean, 26 
Pacific Railroad,, 359 
Pakenham, General, 243, 244 
Palatines, 86 
Palmer, John M., 384 
Palo Alto, 275 
Palos, 13 
Panama, 26 
Panama Canal, 404 
Pan-American Exposition, 403 
Panic of 1837, 267 ; of 1857, 298 ; of 
1873, 365, 366 ; of 1S93, 381 

Paper Making, 139 

Parkman, Francis, 402 ; biography, 

App., 31 
Parsons' Cause, 144 
Parties, Political, 201 
Pathfinder, The, 272, 273 
Patroon, 71 

Patterson, Gen. Robert, 314 
Peacock, The, 235 
Pea Ridge, 319 
Pelican, The, 236 
Pemaquid, 62 

Pemberton, Gen. John C, 339 
Peninsula Campaign, 324, 325 
Penn, William, 81-84-, biography, 

App.. 31 
Pennsylvania, 81, 86, 87, 195 
Pensacola taken, 242, 243, 248 
Pensions, 37S 
People's Party, 379 
Pequot War, 66 
Perry, Matthew C, 287 



46 



INDEX 



Perry, Oliver Hazard, 238, 239;App. 31 

Perryville, 333 

Persia, 10 

Peru, 17, 38 

Peters, Hugh, 136, 137 

Petersburg, 344, 350 

Philadelphia, 82, 83, 86, 166, 168 

Philadelphia, The, 218, 219 

Philip, King, 67,68; App., 31 

Philippines, 27, 393, 397, 403 

Phips, Sir William, loi 

Phoebe, The, 236 

Pickens, Gen. Andrew, 185 

Pickett, Gen. George E., 337 

Pierce, Franklin, 286; App., 31 

Pike, Gen. Zebulon M., 222, 272 

Pikes Peak, 222 

Pilgrims, 54, 55 

Pillow, Gen. G. I., 318 

Pinckney, Mrs., 78 

Pinckney, CharlesC., 187, 211, 212, 215 

Pinta, The, 13 

Pirates, 132, 133, 218 

Piscataqua River, 62 

Pitt, Fort, 115, 118 

Pitt, William, 1 15 

Pittsburg, Fort at, 108; Riot at, 369 

Pittsburg Landing, 321 

Plains of Abraham, 117 

Plata River, 24 

Plattsburg, 242 

Plymouth, 55-58 

Plymouth Company, 42 

Pocahontas, 45, 49; App., 32 

Poe, Edgar Allan, 402 ; biography, 

App., 32 
Point Pleasant, 174 
Polk, James K., 274; biography, App., 

32 
Polo, Marco, 10; App., 32 
Polygamy, 299 
Ponce de Leon, 28 
Pontiac's War, 117, 118 - 
Poor Richard's Almanac, Franklin's, 

170 
Population of United States, 203, 214, 

249, 254, 266, 273, 284, 306, 367, 

373. 397 
Pope, Gen. John, 322, 329 
Popham, George, 43 
Popham Colony, 43 
Populists, 380 
Porter, David D., 234 
Portsmouth, 62 
Portuguese, 11 
Portugal, King of, 12 
Port Bill, Boston, 149 



Port Hudson, 339 

Port Republic, 326 

Port Royal, Acadia, 35, loi, 103 

Port Royal, S. C, 34, 77, ji6 

Porto Rico, 15, 28, 392, 395 

Powhatan, 44, 45 

Prescott, William H., 402 

Preble, Edward, 219 

President (frigate). The, 218, 231 

Presidential Succession, 376 

Presque Isle, 107 

Price, Gen. Sterling, 319 

Princeton, 163 

Printing, First, 139 

Proctor, Gen. Henry A., 238-240 

Protective Tariff, 200 

Providence, 65 

Puebla, 277 

Pueblo, 21, 30 

Pulaski, Count, 167 

Puritans, 54, 59 

Quakers, 60 

Quebec, 33, 34, 36, 95, 98, loi, I16, 

117 
Quebec Act, 150 
Queen Anne's War, 102 
Quern, 136 
Quivira, 30 

Railroad, Underground, 284 

Railroads, First, 259; Pacific, 359, 365; 
Strike of 1877, 369 

Raisin River, 237 

Raleigh, Sir Walter, 38-41; biography, 
App., 32 

Ranger, The, 169 

Reapers, 291, 292 

Rebecca, Lady, 49 

Reconstruction, 355-373 

Red Eagle, 241 

Redemptioners, 130 

Reno, Marcus, A., 365 

Republican Party, 202, 203, 297 

Resaca, 347 

Resaca de la Palma, 275 

Resolutions of 1798, 213, 301 

Revenue Tariff, 200 

Revolution, Causes of , 141-152; in Mid- 
dle Colonies, 159-173; in New Eng- 
land, 152-159 

Revere, Paul, 152 

Rhode Island, 65, 196 

Rhett, Colonel, 133, 134 

Ribault, Jean, 34 

Rice, 78 ■ 

Richmond, 312, 325-332, 351 



INDEX 



47 



Riots, Railroad, 369; strike, 375 

Ripley, E. W., 240 

Roanoke Island, 39, 40 

Roanoke River, 39, 93 

Robertson, James, 173 

Roberval, Jean Fran9ois, 34 

Rolfe, John, 50 

Roosevelt, Theodore, 391, 402-405; 

biography, App., 32 
Rosecrans, Gen. W. S., 333, 340, 341 
Ross, Gen. Robert, 242 
Rough Riders, 391 
Rubber, 292 
Rutledge, John, 179, 187 

Sacs, 264 

St. Augustine, 34, 102, 104 

St. Clair, General, 206 

St. Johns River, 34 

St. Lawrence River, 33 

St. Leger, Colonel Barry, 164 

St. Louis, 369 

.St. Louis, The, 288 

St. Mary's, 75 

Salem, 59, 129 

Salmon Falls, loi 

Salt Lake City, 299 

Samoset, 56 

Sampson, William T., 388, 395 

San Antonio, 277 

San Juan Hill, 391 

San Salvador, 14 

Santa Fe, 31, 276 

Santa Maria, The, 13, 14 

Santiago, 392 

Sassacus, 66 

Savannah, 179, 349 

Savannah, The, 290 

Say and Sele, Lord, 63 

Saybrook, 63 

Sayles, William, 77 

Schenectady, 100 

Schley, Winfield S., 388, 395 

Schofield, Gen. John M., 350 

Schuyler, Peter, loi 

-Schuyler, Gen. I'hilip, 157, 163, 164; 

biography, App., 33 
Schuyler, Fort, 164 
Scotch-Irish, 86 
Scott, Gen. Winfield, 240, 276, 277, 

286, 315; biography, App., 33 
Secession of Southern States, 304-306 
Sedition Act, 213 
Seminoles, 264 
Seminole War, 247 
Semmes. Captain Raphael, 346 
Seneca Chief, The, 259 



Separatists, 54 

Serapis, The, 170 

Seven Days' Battles, 327 

Seven Pines, 326 

Sevier, John, 173, 182 

Sewall, Arthur E., 386 

Seward, William H., 317, 353; biog- 
raphy, App., 33 

Sewing Machines, 293 

Shackamaxon, 83 

Shafter, Gen. William R., 391 

Shannon, The, 236 

Sharpsburg, 330, 331 

Shawnee Indians, 231 

Shays's Rebellion, 191, 192 

Shelby, Isaac, 173, 182 

Sheridan, Philip II., 345, 334; biog- 
raphy, App., 33 

Sherman, Gen. W. T., 322, 342, 349, 
350; biography, App., 33 

Sherman's Raid, 342 

Sliiloh, 321, 322 

Shipbuilding, 136, 137 

Shirley, Gen William, 104, ill, 112 

Shoshone Nation, 17 

Silver Legislation, 378, 381 

Simpson, Sir J. Y., 294 

Sioux, 365 

Six Nations, 177 

Slavery, Compromise of 1S50, 283; Cot- 
ton Industry Affects, 250; Dred Scott 
Case, 298; forbidden by Oglethorpe, 
89; Fugitive Slave Law, 283; in 
Colonial times, 131, 132; in Mexico, 
280; in Texas, 270; introduction of, 
52, 131; Kansas-Nebraska Bill, 294; 
Missouri Compromise, 250; prohibited 
inCalifornia,28i; prohibited in North- 
west, 251 ; Underground Railroad, 
284 ; Wilmot Proviso, 280 

Smith, Captain John, 44, 69; biography, 
App., 34 

.Smith, Joseph, 299 

Smith, Gen. E. Kirby, 333 

Social Life, 127 

Somers, Sir George, 45 

Soule, Pierre, 286 

South Carolina, 76, 77, 87, 88; in revolu- 
tion, 185; nullification ordinance, 263, 
secedes, 304 

South Dakota, 379 

South Sea, 26 

.South \'irginia, 76 

Spain, 32, 2og, acquires Lousiana, 117; 
cedes Florida to British, 117; purchase 
of Florida, 24S; regains Florida, 187; 
war with, 389-395 



48 



INDEX 



Spaniards, 7g 

Specie payment, 370 

Speedwell, The, 55 

Spinning Jenny, 291 

Spoils System, 262 

Spottsylvania Court House, 343 

Squanto, 57 

Stamp Act, 143, 144, 146 

Standish, Miles, 57; App. , 34 

Stark, Gen. John, 165 

Star of the West, The, 310 

Star-Spangled Banner, 242 

Starving Time, 46 

State Sovereignty, 301 

Steamboats, 22S, 229 

Steam Navigation, Ocean, 289, 290 

Stephens, Alexander H.,306; biography, 
App., 34 

Stephenson, Fort, 238 

Steuben, Baron, 168 

Stevens, John, 228 

Stockton, Com. R. F., 277 

Stony I'oint, 169 

Stowe, Mrs. Harriet Beecher, 284; biog- 
raphy, App., 34 

Strikes, 369, 375, 405 

Stuart, Gen. J. E. B. 327 

Stuyvesant, Peter, 73; biog. , App., 34 

Sugar and Molasses Act, 141 

Sullivan, Gen. John, 177 

Sumner, Charles, 296 

Sumter, Gen. Thomas, 185 

Sunday Laws, 12S 

Susan Constant, The, 43 

Taft, William H., 407; biography, 
App., 34 

Tarleton, Sir Banastre, i8r, 183 

Tariff, American System, 253 ; compro- 
mise, 264 ; first, 200 ; Dingley, 386 ; 
M'cKinley, 379 ; Wilson, 382 ; new, 
252 ; of 1824, 253 ; of 1828, 263 ; of 
1883, 372 ; of 1909, 407 ; of 1913, 409 

Tariff of Abominations, 263 

Tanning, 139 

Taylor, Zachary, 275, 276, 279, 281 ; 
biography, App., 34 

Tea, at Charles Town, 149 ; tax on, 149 

Tea Party, Boston, 149 

Tecumseh, 231, 232, 240 

Telegraph, Electric, 292 ; wireless, 399 

Tennessee, 210 

Tenure of Office Act, 358 

Texas, 270, 275, 278 

Thomas, Gen. George H., 317, 334, 341, 
348, 3?o 

Thomson, David, 62 



Ticonderoga, Cannon from, 156; cap- 
tured, 153 ; British defeated at, 115 ; 
expedition against, 114 

Tilden, S. J., 367, 368 

Tippecanoe, 232 

Tisquantum, 56 

Tobacco, 40, 49 

Toronto, 238 

Totem, 22 

Townshend Acts, 146, 149 

Trade Dollars, 370 

Trade Laws, 141 

Transportation Bill, 149 

Transylvania, 174 

Travel, Colonial, 126 

Treasury, Independent, 268 

Trent, William, 108 

Trent Affair, 316 

Trenton, 162 

Tripoli, 218, 2ig 

Tunis, 218 

Tuscarora Indians, 78, 79 

Tyler, John, 268, 269 ; biography, 
,App., 35 

Typesetting machine, 400 

Typewriters, 400 

Uncle Tom's Cabin, 284 

Underground Railroad, 284 

United Colonies, 158 

United Colonies of New England, 67 

Union, First Step toward, 148 

United States (frigate), 234 

Utah, 278, 382 

Vaca, 29 

Valley Forge, 167, 168 

Van Buren, Martin, 267, 268, 279 ; bi- 
ography, App., 35 

Venango, 108 

Venice, 10, 11 

Vera Cruz, 277 

Vermont, 210 

Verazano, 32 

Vespucius, Americus, 24 ; biograph;', 
App., 3.S 

Vicksburg, 338, 339 

Vincennes, 176, 177 

Virginia, 39, 42-54, 86, 87, 92 

Virginia, The, 319-21 

Virginia Resolutions of 1798, 213, 301 

Vixen, The, 219 

Vulcanite, 292 

Wadsworth, Captain Joseph, 91 
Walker, William, 288 
Wallabout, 70 



INDEX 



49 



Wales, 9 

Wampanoags, 57, 67 

Wampum, 20, 84 

War, Civil, 310-354; Indian, see In- 
dians ; Intercolonial, 95-1 iS; Mex- 
ican, 274-27S ; of 18 12, 233-246 ; 
Revolutionary, 141-187; with Algiers, 
245; with Spain, 387-393 ; with Tri- 
poli, 21S 

Warner, Seth, 154 

Washington, George, Administration of 
199 ; at Great Meadows, 109 ; at 
Capture of Fort Duquesne, 115; at 
Monmouth, 168, 169 ; at Princeton, 
163 ; at Newton, 162 ; biography, 
App., 35 ; driven from New York, 
161 ; at New York, 159 ; inaugurated 
President, 198; made Commander in 
Chief, 156 ; marches into Virginia, 
186 ; Messenger to Dinwiddle, 108 ; 
on Braddock's staff, iii ; President 
of Convention, 193 ; retires, 210 ; 
sends Expedition against Six Nations, 
177 ; sends Gates South, iSi 

Washington city taken, 242 

Washington, Fort, 159 

Washington State admitted, 379 

Washington, Treaty of, 363 

Wasp, The, 234 

Watauga, 173, 181 

Watt, James, 229 

Watson, Thomas E., 386 

Wayne, Gen. Anthony, 169, 206, 207 ; 
biography, App., 36 

Webster, Daniel, 269, 270, 281, 282; 
biography, App., 36 

Webster, Noah, 402 

Wells, Horace, 294 

Wells, Me., 102 

West Indies, 14, 43 

West Virginia, 313, 353 

Western Lands, igo 

Westoes Indians, 78 

Wetherstield, 64 

Wetherford, 241 

Weyler, General, 386 



Wheeler, Gen. Joseph, 391, 395 

Whigs, 265, 268, 269 

Whisky Rebellion, 203 

White, John, 40, 58, 59 

Whitney, Eli, 250 ; biography, App., 36 

Whittier, J. G., 402 

Wilderness, 343 

William HI., 92, 102 

William and Mary College, 127 

Wilkes, Captain, 317 

NVilliam Henry, Fort, 113, 114 

Williams, Roger, 64, 65; App. 36 

Williamsburg, 325 

Wilmington, Del., 72 

Wilmot, Daniel, 2S0 

Wilmot Proviso, 280 

Wilson, William F., 382 

Wilson, Woodrow, 408; biography, 

App., 36 
Wilsons Creek, 319 
Winchester, Gen. James, 237 
Winchester, 345 
Windsor, 63, 64 

Winthrop, John, 60; biog., App., 36 
Winthrop, John, the Younger, 63 
Wirt, William, 264 
Wisconsin, 278 
Witchcraft, 129 
Wives, Importation of, 51 
Wolfe, Gen. James, 116, 117; biog- 

raphy, App., 36 
World's Columbian Exposition, 381 
Writs of Assistance, 142 
Wyoming, 177, 278, 379 

X Y Z proposition, 212 

Yale College, 127 
Yeamans, Sir John, 77 
Yeardley, George, 53 
Yemassees, 79 
York, Duke of, 73, 82 
York (Toronto) taken, 238 
York, The, 102 
Young, Rrigham, 299 
Young, Gen. S. B. M., 391 











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Peter of New Amsterdam Stephen of Philadelphii 



DON'T you remember the "Toby Tyler" stories, 
which appeared some years ago in ** Harper's Young 
People"? And don't you remember how impatiently 
boys and girls looked forward to the next issue merely be- 
cause of those tales ? Stories Hke those mean something to 
children and make an impression. 

^ Here are six new stories by the same author, James Otis, 
the first he has ever written for schools. They are just as fas- 
cinating as his earlier ones. They are stories and yet they 
are histories. Their viewpoint is entirely original, the story 
of each settlement being toldby one of the children living in the 
colony. For this reason only such incidents as a child might 
notice, or learn by hearsay, are introduced — but all such in- 
cidents are, as far as possible, historical facts and together they 
present a delightfully graphic and comprehensive description 
of the daily life of the early colonists. 

^ The style in which the children tell the stories reads as 
charmingly as that of a fairy tale, and abounds in quaint hu- 
mor and in wholesome, old-fashioned philosophy. 
^ Each book is profusely illustrated with pen and ink draw- 
ings that not only add to its artistic attractiveness, but will be 
found a genuine aid to the child's imagination in reproducing 
for him realistic glimpses into a home-life of long ago. 
^ There is no better way for your pupils to learn about the 
beginning of our country. The books are just as well suited 
to libraries and home use. Write us about them. 



AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY 

"(Is) 



WEBSTER'S NEW 
SCHOOL DICTIONARIES 

Based on the New International Dictionary, 
thus conforming to the best present usage. 
Three volumes alike in general plan, character, and typog- 
r;iphy, but varying in size, scope, fullness of treatment, and 
price. Each has been made as complete as the limitations 
permit. A comparison with other dictionaries of similar 
grades will show the superior merits and greater usefulness ot 
these genuine WEBSTER SCHOOL DICTIONARIES. 

SECONDARY-SCHOOL DICTIONARY 

EDITIONS WITH AND WITHOUT INDEX 

70,000 Words and Phrases. 1,000 Illustrations. 864 Pages. 

Presents the largest number of words and phrases ever includ- 
ed in a school dictionary. The wide scope of its vocabulary, 
the clearness of its etymologies, the simplicity and accuracy 
of its definitions, the nicety of its synonyms, the authority of 
its spelling and pronunciation, and the helpfulness of its supple- 
mental tables have given this volume a great vogue, not merely 
in secondary schools but in grammar schools and colleges as well. 

ELEMENTARY-SCHOOL DICTIONARY 

45,000 Words and Phrases. 900 Illustrations, yzo Pages. 

Carefully planned to meet the needs of all the elementary 
grades and other schools in which etymologies are not taught. 
It contains all words found in the school texts generally used, 
and includes the technical expressions of ordinary business and 
words used in elementary science. Unusual attention is devoted 
to making a word's meanings clear to immature minds, especially 
by the use of illustrative sentences or phrases and by discrimi- 
nating synonymies. Inflected forms are given when irregular. 

SHORTER SCHOOL DICTIONARY 

35,000 Words and Phrases. Fully Illustrated. 544 Pages. 

In spite of its small size, this book presents a very large 
fund of useful information concerning not only common words 
but technical and scientific terminology and up-to-date words 
needed by elementary pupils. It is unique among smaller 
dictionaries in making clear grammatical difficulties. 

C104) 




LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




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